Month: February 2012

Feb 29, 2012

New Hampshire Court Limits Firefighter’s Rule–Slip and Fall Action by Firefighter May Continue Against Homeowner

“Danger invites rescue,” wrote Judge Benjamin Cordozo in his typical profound and pithy manner [see Wagner v. International Railway, 232 N.Y. 176, 133 N.E. 437 (1921)]. Cordozo’s pronouncement is generally...

New Hampshire Court Limits Firefighter’s Rule–Slip and Fall Action by Firefighter May Continue Against Homeowner New Hampshire Court Limits Firefighter’s Rule–Slip and Fall Action by Firefighter May Continue Against Homeowner
Feb 25, 2012

Tennessee: Combination of Injury and Cocktail of Medications to Treat Nurse’s Continuing Symptoms Equates to Permanent and Total Disability Award

A Special Workers’ Compensation Panel of the Supreme Court of Tennessee recently affirmed a judgment of a trial court that found a worker, a registered nurse, to be permanently and...

Tennessee: Combination of Injury and Cocktail of Medications to Treat Nurse’s Continuing Symptoms Equates to Permanent and Total Disability Award Tennessee: Combination of Injury and Cocktail of Medications to Treat Nurse’s Continuing Symptoms Equates to Permanent and Total Disability Award
Feb 20, 2012

Federal District Court Grants Motion in Limine to Exclude Evidence of Workers’ Comp Benefits Received By Plaintiff

It has long been held that an injured employee should not be allowed to keep the entire amount of his or her workers’ compensation award and also the full common-law...

Federal District Court Grants Motion in Limine to Exclude Evidence of Workers’ Comp Benefits Received By Plaintiff Federal District Court Grants Motion in Limine to Exclude Evidence of Workers’ Comp Benefits Received By Plaintiff
Feb 17, 2012

Six-Day Delay in Getting Offshore Worker Medical Treatment For Stroke Supports Aggravation Claim Under Longshore Act

One of the important axioms of workers’ compensation law is that, generally, the employer takes the employee as it finds that employee [see Larson’s Workers’ Compensation Law, § 9.02]. That...

Six-Day Delay in Getting Offshore Worker Medical Treatment For Stroke Supports Aggravation Claim Under Longshore Act Six-Day Delay in Getting Offshore Worker Medical Treatment For Stroke Supports Aggravation Claim Under Longshore Act
Feb 10, 2012

Worker Claims He Was Fired For Refusing to Wear Safety Program’s “Mark of the Beast”

What’s In a Number? Two years ago, when I got my current cell phone, the cell phone company randomly assigned my new number. I looked at the sticker on the...

Worker Claims He Was Fired For Refusing to Wear Safety Program’s “Mark of the Beast” Worker Claims He Was Fired For Refusing to Wear Safety Program’s “Mark of the Beast”
Feb 10, 2012

Facebook Party Pics Help Defeat Worker’s Claim for Benefits

Until a number of my high school classmates began to plan our 40th reunion gala several years ago, I had successfully avoided Facebook® and the other social media (I’m still...

Facebook Party Pics Help Defeat Worker’s Claim for Benefits Facebook Party Pics Help Defeat Worker’s Claim for Benefits
Feb 4, 2012

In Spite of Statutory Presumptions, Proof of Positive Drug Test May Not Be Enough to Defeat Claims

In the great majority of jurisdictions, voluntary intoxication that renders an employee incapable of performing his or her work is a departure from the course of employment sufficient to defeat...

In Spite of Statutory Presumptions, Proof of Positive Drug Test May Not Be Enough to Defeat Claims In Spite of Statutory Presumptions, Proof of Positive Drug Test May Not Be Enough to Defeat Claims
Feb 2, 2012

Ohio: Cautious Medical Testimony Dooms Death Benefits Claim Related to “Poster Child for Heart Disease”

An Ohio appellate court recently found that medical evidence presented in a death claim case was too speculative to support the required causal connection between a worker’s fatal heart attack...

Ohio: Cautious Medical Testimony Dooms Death Benefits Claim Related to “Poster Child for Heart Disease” Ohio: Cautious Medical Testimony Dooms Death Benefits Claim Related to “Poster Child for Heart Disease”