The opinion
FILED
Oct 20, 2025
03:22 PM(CT)
TENNESSEE COURT OF
WORKERS' COMPENSATION
CLAIMS
TENNESSEE BUREAU OF WORKERS’ COMPENSATION
IN THE COURT OF WORKERS’ COMPENSATION CLAIMS
AT KNOXVILLE
SAEEDA JOHNSON, ) Docket No. 2023-03-0894
Employee, )
v. )
AIMBRIDGE HOSPITATLITY, )
Employer, ) State File No. 33112-2023
and )
STARR INDEMNITY and )
LIABILITY COMPANY, )
Carrier. ) Judge Brian K. Addington
COMPENSATION ORDER
The Court held a compensation hearing on October 3, 2025, at Saeeda Johnson’s
request. For the reasons below, the Court holds she is entitled to lifetime medical benefits
for her injury, but she did not prove entitlement to permanent disability benefits.
History of Claim
Ms. Johnson worked for Aimbridge Hospitality as a banquet server. On April 24,
2023, her supervisor asked her to move chairs and set them up for a banquet. She attempted
to move them by herself because Aimbridge was understaffed. The cart holding the chairs
had a flat tire, and when she moved it across a threshold, the cart caught, and the chairs fell
on her.
Ms. Johnson reported the injury and sought medical treatment on her own. Later,
Ambridge authorized treatment at a local emergency department. There, diagnostic tests
showed no fractures, but she was diagnosed with right-wrist and elbow contusions, and
neck pain. She was released to return to work two days later.
Four days after her injury, Ms. Johnson was involved in a motor vehicle accident
where she was rear-ended. At the emergency room for that incident, she complained of
low back, right hand, right knee, and neck pain. The diagnostic tests were normal, although
she did receive diagnoses of lumbar strain and hand contusion. After this treatment, she
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saw her own provider, a nurse practitioner, who took her off work from May 2 through
May 9.
On May 10, she received authorized treatment for her work injury from Dr. Blake.
She was assigned light-duty restrictions, which the Court found previously entitled her to
temporary partial disability benefits from May 10 through May 24. During this time Ms.
Johnson and the employer disagreed about a leave of absence, and she was also dissatisfied
that Aimbridge was not more empathetic about her injury. For those reasons, she chose to
resign her job on May 31.
After Dr. Blake retired, Ms. Johnson chose Dr. Joshua Moss from a panel. He
ordered diagnostic tests and gave her a cortisone injection. He also placed a lifting
restriction of no more than five pounds for six weeks. At return appointments, Ms. Johnson
refused additional injections and surgery. Dr. Moss also ordered a functional capacity
evaluation, which Ms. Johnson appeared for, but when she learned the extent of the testing,
she refused to participate. The evaluation was never completed.
Dr. Moss released Ms. Johnson with no restrictions and no impairment on December
17, 2024.
Ms. Johnson has sought medical treatment on her own and has worked as a food
server after her injury. However, she quit because her arm hurt. She sought treatment for
her arm most recently on September 24, 2025, but diagnostic tests were normal, and the
records do not reflect that her condition was primarily related to her work incident.
At the hearing, Ms. Johnson argued that she was entitled to permanent disability
benefits and medical benefits. She contended that she was tired of the process and did not
want to see another authorized physician. Instead, she wanted payment for medical
treatment she might obtain on her own.
Ambridge argued that Ms. Johnson is entitled to medical benefits only because she
presented no evidence of permanent disability. It also contended that Ms. Johnson was not
compliant with previous treatment.
Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law
Ms. Johnson must prove every element of her claim by a preponderance of the
evidence. Tenn. Code Ann. § 50-6-239(c)(6) (2024).
Although Aimbridge admitted Ms. Johnson sustained a compensable injury, she
must offer an impairment rating to receive permanent disability benefits. Baumgardner v.
UPS, 2017 TN Wrk. Comp. App. Bd. LEXIS 63, at *11 (Oct. 18, 2017).
Ms. Johnson did not offer an impairment rating, so the Court has no proof on which
to base permanent partial disability benefits. Therefore, the Court holds that Ms. Johnson
is entitled to continued reasonable and necessary medical treatment for her arm injury from
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Dr. Moss. Id. § 50-6-204(b)(1); Barron v. State Dep’t of Human Servs., 184 S.W.3d 219,
223 (Tenn. 2006). Further, any alleged noncompliance does not affect her right to future
treatment. LeMaire v. Lowe’s Home Ctrs., LLC, No. M2025-00128-SC-R3-WC, 2025
Tenn. LEXIS 436, at *14-15 (Tenn. Workers’ Comp. Panel Oct. 15, 2025)
IT IS ORDERED AS FOLLOWS:
1. Aimbridge shall provide authorized medical treatment for Ms. Johnson’s injury
under Tennessee Code Annotated Section 50-6-204.
2. Ms. Johnson’s request for permanent disability benefits is denied.
3. Aimbridge shall pay the $150.00 filing fee to the Court Clerk within five days
of entry of this order and file an SD-2 within ten days of this order becoming
final.
4. Unless appealed, this order shall become final 30 days after entry.
ENTERED October 20, 2025.
Brian K. Addington
_______________________________
BRIAN K. ADDINGTON, JUDGE
Court of Workers’ Compensation Claims
Appendix
Exhibits:
1. Affidavit of Saeeda Johnson
2. Wage Statement
3. Employee’s choice of physician-medical panel
4. Dr. Joshua Moss medical records and
5. (Collective) Diagnostic reports
6. Work status notes
7. Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center medical records
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CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I certify that a copy of this Order was sent as indicated on October 20, 2025.
Name First Email Service sent to:
Class
Saeeda Johnson, X X saeedajohnson@gmail.com
Employee 310 Gilbert Ln.
Apt. 2
Knoxville, TN 37920
Phillip Baker, X pbaker@fbslawfirm.com
Employer’s Attorney kbowman@fbslawfirm.com
______________________________________
PENNY SHRUM, COURT CLERK
wc.courtclerk@tn.gov
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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
ප Expedited Hearing Order filed on _______________ ප Motion Order filed on ___________________
ප Compensation Order filed on__________________ ප 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 *
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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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