The opinion
FILED
May 14, 2025
08:33 AM(CT)
TENNESSEE COURT OF
WORKERS' COMPENSATION
CLAIMS
TENNESSEE BUREAU OF WORKERS’ COMPENSATION
IN THE COURT OF WORKERS’ COMPENSATION CLAIMS
AT GRAY
In re BRAULIO J. HERNANDEZ ) Docket No. 2024-20-2354
RAMOS, by his surviving spouse, )
Oralia Vincent Lopez, on her own. )
Employee, )
v. )
TEJ PRAMUKH HOSPITALITY, )
INCORPORATED, d/b/a ECONO ) State File No. 860130-2024
LODGE, )
Employer, )
and )
MARKEL SERVICE )
INCORPORATED is the Servicing )
Entity for MARKLE INSURANCE ) Judge Brian K. Addington
COMPANY, )
Carrier. )
COMPENSATION ORDER
GRANTING SUMMARY JUDGMENT
Mr. Ramos’s wife, Oralia Lopez, filed a petition for benefit determination
requesting past medical benefits, temporary disability benefits and death benefits as his
surviving spouse. TEJ Pramukh filed a motion for summary judgment, which the Court
heard on May 8, 2025. Both parties appeared for the hearing.
Because TEJ demonstrated Ms. Lopez’s evidence is insufficient to establish an
essential element of her claim, the issue is whether she responded with specific facts
showing a genuine issue for trial. Since she did not, TEJ is entitled to summary judgment.
.
1
Claim History
Mr. Ramos and Ms. Lopez worked together cleaning motel rooms for TEJ. On
October 28, 2023, Ms. Lopez left the room they were cleaning to get some towels. When
she returned, another co-worker told her that Mr. Lopez had fallen. The co-worker did
not see the fall. When asked, Mr. Ramos confirmed he was okay. Around five to seven
minutes later Ms. Lopez heard a loud sound in the bathroom. When she checked, she
found Mr. Ramos on the floor laying across the bathtub. He was flown to Knoxville for
emergency treatment.
Mr. Ramos remained in the hospital for approximately two months before being
released to hospice care at home. Ms. Lopez testified during a deposition that she was
told Mr. Ramos suffered a stroke. However, she testified that she was never advised by
his doctors that the stroke was caused by his work. Ms. Lopez did not submit any medical
evidence for the Court to consider.
After issuance of a dispute certification notice, the Court set scheduling deadlines,
including for filing dispositive motions and a dispositive-motion hearing date. The Court
encouraged Ms. Lopez to seek counsel and to contact the Bureau’s ombudsman program.
Later, TEJ filed a Motion for Summary Judgment with a statement of undisputed
material facts with citations to the record in compliance with Rule 56.03 of the Tennessee
Rules of Civil Procedure.
The statement of undisputed material facts included:
1. Ms. Lopez seeks worker’s compensation benefits arising out of an alleged
October 28, 2023, work incident and the March 6, 2024, death of her husband,
Braulio J. Ramos.
2. She alleges Mr. Ramos fell twice while cleaning a motel room for the
employer.
3. No one knows why Mr. Ramos fell either time on October 28, 2023.
4. After the alleged work incident, medical providers told Ms. Lopez that Mr.
Ramos had suffered a stroke.
5. Ms. Lopez has not submitted a medical opinion from a physician stating that
Mr. Ramos’s employment with TEJ contributed more than 50% in causing his
alleged injury and/or death.
6. Ms. Lopez has not provided a medical opinion from a physician that Mr.
Ramos’s employment with TEJ contributed more than 50% in causing any
need for treatment.
7. Ms. Lopez has not identified a work-related hazard that supposedly caused or
contributed to Mr. Ramos’s injury or death.
2
Ms. Lopez did not file a response to the motion or any affidavits from physicians.
Law and Analysis
Summary Judgment is appropriate when “the pleadings, depositions, answers to
interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, show that
there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to a
judgment as a matter of law.” Tenn. R. Civ. P. 56.04 (2024).
TEJ must do one of two things to succeed in its motion: (1) submit affirmative
evidence that negates an essential element of Ms. Lopez’s claim, or (2) demonstrate that
her evidence is insufficient to establish an essential element of her claim. Tenn. Code
Ann. § 20-16-101 (2022); see also Rye v. Women’s Care Ctr. of Memphis, MPLLC, 477
S.W.3d 235, 264 (Tenn. 2015).
If TEJ does either or both, Ms. Lopez must respond by producing specific facts
showing a genuine issue for trial. Id.; Tenn. R. Civ. P. 56.06. If she does not, then
“summary judgment, if appropriate, shall be entered against [her].” Id.
Here, TEJ demonstrated Ms. Lopez has insufficient medical evidence to establish
an essential element of her claim. Specifically, she has not obtained medical evidence to
prove that Mr. Ramos’s injury arose primarily out of his employment. Thus, Ms. Lopez
must produce evidence showing a genuine issue for trial. Yet she did not respond to the
motion or supply affidavits from physicians that Mr. Lopez’s accident or death was
primarily related to his work.
Based on these facts, TEJ successfully showed that Ms. Lopez’s evidence is
insufficient to establish medical causation, which is an essential element of her claim.
Therefore, no genuine issue of material fact exists regarding the question of causation,
and the Court holds TEJ is entitled to summary judgment as a matter of law.
IT IS, THEREFORE, ORDERED as follows:
1. TEJ is entitled to summary judgment as a matter of law of the issue of benefits
arising from Mr. Ramos’s accident and death.
2. The Court taxes the $150.00 filing fee to TEJ under Tennessee Compilation Rules
and Regulations 0800-02-21-06 (2023) payable to the Clerk within five business
days.
3. Unless appealed, this Order shall become final 30 days after entry.
3
ENTERED May 14, 2025.
Brian K. Addington
______________________________________
BRIAN K. ADDINGTON, JUDGE
Court of Workers’ Compensation Claims
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I certify that a copy of this Order was sent on May 14, 2025.
Name First Class Email Service sent to:
Oralia Vincent Lopez X 1165 East Rose Street
Morristown, TN 37814
Lee Ann Murray and X leeamurray@feeneymurray.com
Taylor Pruitt, trp@feeneymurray.com
Employer’s Attorneys
______________________________________
PENNY SHRUM, COURT CLERK
wc.courtclerk@tn.gov
4
Right to Appeal:
If you disagree with the Court’s Order, you may appeal to the Workers’ Compensation
Appeals Board. To do so, you must:
1. Complete the enclosed form entitled “Notice of Appeal” and file it with the Clerk of the
Court of Workers’ Compensation Claims before the expiration of the deadline.
¾ If the order being appealed is “expedited” (also called “interlocutory”), or if the
order does not dispose of the case in its entirety, the notice of appeal must be filed
within seven (7) business days of the date the order was filed.
¾ If the order being appealed is a “Compensation Order,” or if it resolves all issues
in the case, the notice of appeal must be filed within thirty (30) calendar days of
the date the Compensation Order was filed.
When filing the Notice of Appeal, you must serve a copy on the opposing party (or attorney,
if represented).
2. You must pay, via check, money order, or credit card, a $75.00 filing fee within ten calendar
days after filing the Notice of Appeal. Payments can be made in-person at any Bureau office
or by U.S. mail, hand-delivery, or other delivery service. In the alternative, you may file an
Affidavit of Indigency (form available on the Bureau’s website or any Bureau office)
seeking a waiver of the filing fee. You must file the fully-completed Affidavit of Indigency
within ten calendar days of filing the Notice of Appeal. Failure to timely pay the filing
fee or file the Affidavit of Indigency will result in dismissal of your appeal.
3. You are responsible for ensuring a complete record is presented on appeal. If no court
reporter was present at the hearing, you may request from the Court Clerk the audio
recording of the hearing for a $25.00 fee. If you choose to submit a transcript as part of your
appeal, which the Appeals Board has emphasized is important for a meaningful review of
the case, a licensed court reporter must prepare the transcript, and you must file it with the
Court Clerk. The Court Clerk will prepare the record for submission to the Appeals Board,
and you will receive notice once it has been submitted. For deadlines related to the filing of
transcripts, statements of the evidence, and briefs on appeal, see the applicable rules on the
Bureau’s website at https://www.tn.gov/wcappealsboard. (Click the “Read Rules” button.)
4. After the Workers’ Compensation Judge approves the record and the Court Clerk transmits
it to the Appeals Board, a docketing notice will be sent to the parties.
If neither party timely files an appeal with the Appeals Board, the Court Order
becomes enforceable. See Tenn. Code Ann. § 50-6-239(d)(3) (expedited/interlocutory
orders) and Tenn. Code Ann. § 50-6-239(c)(7) (compensation orders).
For self-represented litigants: Help from an Ombudsman is available at 800-332-2667.
NOTICE OF APPEAL
Tennessee Bureau of Workers’ Compensation
www.tn.gov/workforce/injuries-at-work/
wc.courtclerk@tn.gov | 1-800-332-2667
Docket No.: ________________________
State File No.: ______________________
Date of Injury: _____________________
___________________________________________________________________________
Employee
v.
___________________________________________________________________________
Employer
Notice is given that ____________________________________________________________________
[List name(s) of all appealing party(ies). Use separate sheet if necessary.]
appeals the following order(s) of the Tennessee Court of Workers’ Compensation Claims to the
Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board;ĐŚĞĐŬŽŶĞŽƌŵŽƌĞĂƉƉůŝĐĂďůĞďŽdžĞƐĂŶĚŝŶĐůƵĚĞƚŚĞĚĂƚĞĨŝůĞͲ
ƐƚĂŵƉĞĚŽŶƚŚĞĨŝƌƐƚƉĂŐĞŽĨƚŚĞŽƌĚĞƌ;ƐͿďĞŝŶŐĂƉƉĞĂůĞĚͿ͗
□ Expedited Hearing Order filed on _______________ □ Motion Order filed on ___________________
□ Compensation Order filed on__________________ □ Other Order filed on_____________________
issued by Judge _________________________________________________________________________.
Statement of the Issues on Appeal
Provide a short and plain statement of the issues on appeal or basis for relief on appeal:
________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________
Parties
Appellant(s) (Requesting Party): _________________________________________ ܆Employer ܆Employee
Address: ________________________________________________________ Phone: ___________________
Email: __________________________________________________________
Attorney’s Name: ______________________________________________ BPR#: _______________________
Attorney’s Email: ______________________________________________ Phone: _______________________
Attorney’s Address: _________________________________________________________________________
* Attach an additional sheet for each additional Appellant *
LB-1099 rev. 01/20 Page 1 of 2 RDA 11082
Employee Name: _______________________________________ Docket No.: _____________________ Date of Inj.: _______________
Appellee(s) (Opposing Party): ___________________________________________ ܆Employer ܆Employee
Appellee’s Address: ______________________________________________ Phone: ____________________
Email: _________________________________________________________
Attorney’s Name: _____________________________________________ BPR#: ________________________
Attorney’s Email: _____________________________________________ Phone: _______________________
Attorney’s Address: _________________________________________________________________________
* Attach an additional sheet for each additional Appellee *
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I, _____________________________________________________________, certify that I have forwarded a
true and exact copy of this Notice of Appeal by First Class mail, postage prepaid, or in any manner as described
in Tennessee Compilation Rules & Regulations, Chapter 0800-02-21, to all parties and/or their attorneys in this
case on this the __________ day of ___________________________________, 20 ____.
______________________________________________
[Signature of appellant or attorney for appellant]
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