Newest Articles

Oct 22, 2026

NY PTSD Claim Fails Under Pre-Amendment Stress Standard

Subway Cleaner Who Witnessed a Platform Injury A New York appellate court recently affirmed a Workers’ Compensation Board decision disallowing a subway-station cleaner’s PTSD claim after he witnessed a woman’s...

NY PTSD Claim Fails Under Pre-Amendment Stress Standard NY PTSD Claim Fails Under Pre-Amendment Stress Standard
Oct 20, 2026

Who Made the Firing Decision? Alabama Court Upholds Retaliation Finding

AL Supreme Court: HR’s Role Was a Jury Question The Alabama Supreme Court, by a 5–4 vote, affirmed liability for retaliatory discharge where the evidence permitted a jury to find...

Who Made the Firing Decision? Alabama Court Upholds Retaliation Finding Who Made the Firing Decision? Alabama Court Upholds Retaliation Finding
Oct 19, 2026

Uncertain Cardiac Sequence Does Not Defeat NY Bus Driver’s Claim

NY Bus Driver’s Crash and Arrhythmia A New York appellate court has affirmed a Workers’ Compensation Board finding that a school bus driver’s injuries and death arose out of his...

Uncertain Cardiac Sequence Does Not Defeat NY Bus Driver’s Claim Uncertain Cardiac Sequence Does Not Defeat NY Bus Driver’s Claim
Oct 15, 2026

Safety Rule Defense Fails Where Employer Tolerated Violation

IL Applies Saunders Acquiescence Exception to Footwear Rule An Illinois appellate court, in a decision not designated for full publication, has affirmed an award of benefits to an ice cream...

Safety Rule Defense Fails Where Employer Tolerated Violation Safety Rule Defense Fails Where Employer Tolerated Violation

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Sep 24, 2026

“Closed” Under Old Rules, Reprocessed Under New

Oregon Court Applies New Claim-Closure Requirements to Case Pending on Judicial Review The Oregon Court of Appeals has held that 2022 amendments limiting retroactive “medically stationary” determinations apply to a...

“Closed” Under Old Rules, Reprocessed Under New “Closed” Under Old Rules, Reprocessed Under New
Sep 22, 2026

Whose Work Was Being Done?

Federal Court: Gas Producer That Hired Out Well Casing Is Casing Worker’s Statutory Employer Under Pennsylvania Law A federal district court in Pennsylvania has held that a natural gas producer...

Whose Work Was Being Done? Whose Work Was Being Done?
Sep 21, 2026

Reopening a Claim Nobody Had Yet Decided

CO Court of Appeals: No “Change in Condition” Reopening Unless Compensability Was Admitted or Determined Before Closure A Colorado appellate court has held that a workers’ compensation claim closed for...

Reopening a Claim Nobody Had Yet Decided Reopening a Claim Nobody Had Yet Decided
Sep 17, 2026

Employee on the Job, Contractor on Paper

PA Commonwealth Court Affirms Employee Status Over Contractor Paperwork, Dissent Presses the Payroll Audit The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania, sitting en banc, affirmed a finding that a satellite-dish installer was...

Employee on the Job, Contractor on Paper Employee on the Job, Contractor on Paper
Sep 15, 2026

A Morning Without a Case

Unpublishitis, a Contagious Condition Afflicting our Courts I spent this morning looking for a workers’ compensation decision worth blogging. I did not, in any meaningful sense, find one. What I...

A Morning Without a Case A Morning Without a Case
Sep 14, 2026

Ten Years, One Claim

D.C.’s Highest Local Court Splits 2-1 on Whether a Single Timely Filing Can Keep a Workers’ Compensation Claim Alive Through a Decade of Silence In a panel decision, the District...

Ten Years, One Claim Ten Years, One Claim
Sep 10, 2026

Blackout Behind the Wheel

Indiana Holds That Driving at Highway Speed Increased the Risk of a Fainting Spell, Making the Resulting Crash Injuries Compensable The Indiana Court of Appeals has affirmed an award of...

Blackout Behind the Wheel Blackout Behind the Wheel
Sep 8, 2026

PA’s AMA Guides Law Beats Back a New Kind of Challenge

State Court Rejects Three Constitutional Theories Against Its Impairment-Rating Statute — Including One Never Tested Before A Pennsylvania appeals court has affirmed a modification from total to partial disability benefits...

PA’s AMA Guides Law Beats Back a New Kind of Challenge PA’s AMA Guides Law Beats Back a New Kind of Challenge
Sep 4, 2026

Sixteen “Matches,“ No Fraud

NY's Third Department Affirms the Board's Rejection of a § 114-a Finding Built on Mismatched Database Hits Yesterday, the Appellate Division, Third Department affirmed a Workers' Compensation Board decision finding...

Sixteen “Matches,“ No Fraud Sixteen “Matches,“ No Fraud
Sep 1, 2026

KY Supreme Court Clarifies Timing of Employer’s Subrogation Credit After Third-Party Settlement

The Kentucky Supreme Court has held that an employer’s statutory right to recover workers’ compensation benefits from an employee’s third-party settlement takes effect immediately, rejecting an argument that would have...

KY Supreme Court Clarifies Timing of Employer’s Subrogation Credit After Third-Party Settlement KY Supreme Court Clarifies Timing of Employer’s Subrogation Credit After Third-Party Settlement
Aug 31, 2026

Florida Court Clarifies Standard for Reimbursing Guardianship Expenses in Comp Claims

The First District Court of Appeal has reversed a Judge of Compensation Claims who applied too narrow a standard in denying a claimant reimbursement for the costs of obtaining a...

Florida Court Clarifies Standard for Reimbursing Guardianship Expenses in Comp Claims Florida Court Clarifies Standard for Reimbursing Guardianship Expenses in Comp Claims
Aug 24, 2026

Waiving a Defense You Never Actually Argued

Utah Supreme Court Says a Pleaded Notice Defense Dies if the Employer Never Asks the ALJ to Rule on It The Utah Supreme Court has held that an employer waives...

Waiving a Defense You Never Actually Argued Waiving a Defense You Never Actually Argued

New Comments

  • ramivou: They hid behind a flawed "reading" of this statute for a decade. I am glad the SC finally put an end to the misconception that it was a "first six months only" filing requirement, rather than an ongoing responsibility.
  • trob: Thanks for the query. New York's going and coming doctrine is similar to that in place in the majority of jurisdictions. That is to say that for employees with a fixed place of work and who are on a relatively consistent work schedule, the commute to and from the residence is outside the course and scope of the employment. Often overlooked is the fact that the employee must generally have a fixed ...
  • ramivou: Is coming and going covered in NY?
  • trob: Excellent question. My thought is that the employer was following what it assumed was the typical practice of seeking to protect its "subrogation" interest in state court; in virtually all jurisdictions, the state trial courts are where subrogation issues are litigated. What differed here, of course, was that it wasn't a standard subrogation case, i.e., the employee's work-related injury wasn't ca...
  • ramivou: Why didn't they file it with the state Commission instead?
  • Thomas A. Robinson: I suspect that ACME could seek contractual indemnity, as you note, either from the staffing agency or its carrier. The goal of the Board or agency generally is to see to the proper award of benefits for compensable injuries. Allowing the "aggrieved" parties to sort it out later is completely consistent with the overall theory of workers' compensation. Many thanks for the comment. Best wishes.
  • Barry Stinson: I wonder if Acme's insurer could seek contractural indemnity from Variety's insurer outside of the WC system.
  • Michael C. Duff: The conceptual distinction is between joint causation and presumptive single causation.
  • Thomas A. Robinson: Sorry, I don't/can't provide legal advice. Best wishes, however.
  • Ken Smith: What can I do when my attorney blows my case with an incomplete RB89