Wilkes v. Montana State Fund

¶1 Donald Wilkes (Wilkes) appeals from an order of the Workers’ Compensation Court (WCC), denying Wilkes’s summary judgment motion and granting Montana State Fund’s (State Fund) summary judgment motion. We affirm.

¶2 Wilkes presents the following issue for review:

¶3 Whether the WCC properly determined that the sole reliance on actual wage loss in § 39-71-703, MCA, in determining permanent partial disability (PPD) benefits does not violate Wilkes’s constitutional right to equal protection.

PROCEDURAL AND FACTUAL BACKGROUND

¶4 Wilkes worked principally as a farmer. He operated his farm as a sole…