Worker Fails to Prove Financial Need for Lump-Sum Benefits Conversion

The Montana Workers’ Compensation Court denied a worker’s request to have his permanent total disability benefits converted to a lump sum. Derek Trogden is a 40-year-old married father of four. His two eldest children are adults who do not live with him and his wife. The two youngest children have jobs at a manufacturing plant where they are supervised by Trogden’s brother. Neither contributes any earnings toward the family’s living expenses. Trogden’s wife is a full-time pharmacy technician. She suffers from multiple medical conditions that alle...