Opinion
CASE NO. 55-CRD-3-81
DECEMBER 29, 1981
The appellant-claimant was represented by Jeffrey Rosen, Esq.
The appellee-respondent was represented by Horace Trotta, Esq.
This Petition for Review from the February 25, 1981 Finding and Award of the Commissioner for the Third District was argued September 18, 1981 before a Compensation Review Division panel consisting of Commissioners John Arcudi, A. Paul Berte' and Robin Waller.
FINDING AND AWARD
The Finding and Award and the Dismissal of Claim by the Third District Commissioner is affirmed and adopted as the Finding and Award of this Division.
OPINION
This is an appeal from a dismissal of a claim by the third district commissioner. The claimant-appellant was a police officer of the City of New Haven. He suffered a nervous breakdown November 27, 1978 during his employment. He was treated in the Connecticut Valley Hospital and then at the psychiatric floor of St. Raphael's Hospital in New Haven and discharged from the latter facility December 14, 1978. He did not return to police work after November 27, 1978 except during the month of January, 1979 when he performed a desk job in the police department. His increased nervousness caused him to leave that particular job.
In the proceedings before the commissioner, Dr. Wendy Stewart, a Ph.D in clinical psychology, who treated the claimant from December, 1978 to March, 1980 testified that claimant's psychiatric problems and subsequent disability were a result and arose out of his employment. Wayne Julian, M.D., a licensed physician and a fourth year resident in psychiatry at the Yale New Haven Hospital testified in the October 14, 1980 hearing before the Commissioner. He had seen the claimant May 16, 1980 and May 23, 1980 at the Connecticut Mental Health Center. Dr. Julian's testimony denied that claimant's work had caused the psychiatric episode of November 27, 1978.
The commissioner in her finding relied on Dr. Julian's testimony and concluded that claimants' disability was not work related. The claimant appellant attacks this conclusion and the testimony on which it is based. He contends that the commissioner gave too much weight to the conclusion of a doctor who was not yet a board certified psychiatrist and not enough weight to the treating therapist. Our reading of the transcript does not reveal that claimant's counsel at the hearing raised the objection that Dr. Julian was not a qualified expert to testify about claimant's psychiatric condition.
Nor has the appellant argued in this tribunal that Dr. Julian's expert testimony should not have been received in evidence. Basically, his argument is that his expert under all the circumstances was a better expert than respondent's expert and therefore should have been given more weight. The issue thus framed leaves little choice for an appellate panel. The commissioner is the trier of the facts and the ultimate judge of the credibility and reliability of witnesses and the weight 10 be given to their testimony. Engelhard v. Capewell Mfg. Co. 137 Conn. 32 (1950), Czeplicki v. Fafnir Bearing Co., 137 Conn. 454 (1951). Mund v. Farmers Cooperative Inc., 139 Conn. 338 (1952), Adzima v. U.A.C./Norden Division, 177 Conn. 107 (1979). We cannot substitute our conclusions of fact for hers.
The decision of the commissioner is affirmed.