He never showed up to fight it, and Tennessee's one-year clock had already run out
A truck driver waited more than a year to file his workers' compensation claim. That delay, not the injury, decided the case.
The driver, who worked for US Xpress, said he was hurt on January 23, 2024, while operating equipment he alleged did not meet Department of Transportation rules. He filed his petition for benefits on May 1, 2025. His claim also named the company's workers' compensation carrier, Great West Casualty Co.
The court never reached the injury or the equipment allegation. It decided the case on timing. Under Tennessee law, a worker who has received no benefits must file within one year of the accident. The court found no benefits had been paid - no temporary disability payments, and no care from a physician the company approved. The one-year clock ran from the injury date, and by May 2025 it had already expired.
US Xpress moved for summary judgment, which lets a court decide a case without a full hearing when the key facts are not genuinely in dispute. It backed the motion with a statement of undisputed facts: the petition was dated May 1, 2025, the injury date was January 23, 2024, the driver sought care from a physician the company never approved, and he received no temporary disability benefits.
The driver did not fight the motion. He filed no response and did not appear at the hearing. On his petition he had noted trouble working out where to file, but that uncertainty did not pause the deadline.
That silence sealed the result. Once US Xpress showed the filing landed more than a year after the injury with no benefits paid, the driver had to come forward with facts putting the deadline in dispute. He offered none. The court found the company had negated an essential element of the claim, granted summary judgment, and dismissed the claim with prejudice - meaning the driver cannot refile it.
For HR and benefits teams, the mechanics are the point. When an employer has paid no benefits and the worker has had no employer-approved care, the shorter one-year window applies, and it runs from the injury date. A worker's confusion about the process does not extend it. The early calls a company makes about medical authorization and interim payments can decide which limitations clock governs a claim months later.
Even though it prevailed, US Xpress was taxed the $150 filing fee and ordered to file the closing form. Unless appealed, the order becomes final 30 days after entry.
