Oliver v. Labor Commission, 2017 UT 39 (July 25, 2017)

This case involved a dispute over the interpretation of Utah’s Permanent Disability Statute (Utah Code § 34A-2-413). The statute requires an employee to satisfy six elements to be considered permanently disabled. One of the elements is that the injury “limit the employee’s ability to do basic work activities.” The court of appeals interpreted this to mean any limitation, no matter how slight.  The supreme court overturned, holding that the element is satisfied only when “the impairment meaningfully inhibits the employee from exercising a common core of capabilities.”