Johnson Controls, Inc. v. Fields

This is an appeal from a Superior Court decision affirming the Industrial Accident Board’s (the “Board”) award of partial disability benefits. The Superior Court ruled that forfeiture of permanent partial compensation benefits could not be implied where an employee is terminated for cause. We agree that, in the absence of clear statutory authority, there can be no forfeiture of benefits for lost earning capacity. Accordingly, we affirm.

I

Adrian Fields (“Fields”) began working for the appellant, Johnson Controls, Inc. (“Johnson Controls”), in September 1988. Fields injured his lower back on…