Kersey v. Durham Regional Hospital

Of course the plaintiff was "lulled" by the circumstances into failing to file a claim with the Commission. In none of the many N.C.G.S. § 24(a)/estoppel cases has the plaintiff intentionally allowed the time to run, at least by their evidence. But among that group, the facts here are mundane. Defendants paid five of plaintiff's medical bills in March through May 1989 under their workers' compensation insurance policy.

Under North Carolina caselaw, payment of medical bills, even without formal denial of liability, does not have the effect of an admission of liability by the employer, or…