Linnhaven, Inc., and Accident Fund National Insurance Company/United Heartland
v.
Roger Blasdell, surviving spouse of Heather Blasdell
Appellant
Linnhaven, Inc., and Accident Fund National Insurance Company/United Heartland
Appellee
Roger Blasdell, surviving spouse of Heather Blasdell
Attorney for the Appellant
Laura J. Ostrander
Attorney for the Appellee
Thomas Wertz
Court of Appeals
Court of Appeals Opinion
Opinion Number:
Date Published:
Summary
Appeal from the Iowa District Court for Polk County, Coleman McAllister, Judge. AFFIRMED. Heard by Greer, P.J., and Buller and Langholz, JJ. Opinion by Langholz, J. (13 pages)
Linnhaven, Inc. and its insurer, Accident Fund National Insurance Company/United Heartland, appeal the district court’s denial of their petition for judicial review of the workers’ compensation commissioner’s decision finding that Roger Blasdell’s death benefits are not barred by the willful-injury defense of Iowa Code section 85.16(1) (2016). OPINION HOLDS: Substantial evidence supports the commissioner’s ruling that Blasdell’s wife’s death was accidental rather than a suicide and that Linnhaven thus failed to meet its burden to prove the willful-injury affirmative defense. Linnhaven’s alternative argument—that the decision should be reversed because Blasdell did not prove that his wife’s death was caused by a work injury—is not preserved for our review. It was not decided by the commissioner or the district court, and Linnhaven never clearly raised the issue before the commissioner.
