White v. Georgia-Pacific Corporation

Appellant Jimmy White appeals the decision of the Arkansas Workers' Compensation Commission denying him disability benefits. The Arkansas Court of Appeals affirmed the Commission's decision in White v. Georgia-Pacific Corp., 66 Ark. App. 337, 989 S.W.2d 942 (1999). We granted White's petition for review pursuant to Ark.Sup.Ct.R. 1-2(e). White's argument on appeal is meritorious, and we reverse the Commission's decision. Standard of Review [1,2] Upon a petition for review, we consider a case as though it had been originally filed in this court. Burlington Indus. v. Pickett, 336 Ark. 515, 988 S.W.2d 3 (1999). We view the evidence in a light most favorable to the Commission's decision, and we uphold that decision if it is supported by substantial evidence. Deffenbaugh Indus. v. Angus, 313 Ark. 100, 852 S.W.2d 804 (1993). We will not reverse the Commission's decision unless we are convinced that fair-minded persons with the same facts before them could not have reached the conclusions arrived at by the Commission. Pickett, 336 Ark. 515, 988 S.W.2d 3; ERC Contr. Yard & Sales v. Robertson, 335 Ark. 63, 977 S.W.2d 212 (1998).