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Oct 7, 2026

Two Boxes Checked “No”

LA Second Circuit Affirms Forfeiture for False Answers on Pre-Hire Questionnaires About Prior Work Accidents and a Recommended Surgery Louisiana’s Second Circuit Court of Appeal has affirmed a ruling that...

Two Boxes Checked “No” Two Boxes Checked “No”
Oct 5, 2026

Louisiana Court: Paid a Percentage, Still an Employee

LA Fourth Circuit, 3–2, Holds Dump-Truck Driver Paid 25% of Truck Earnings Was an Employee Despite 1099; Dissent Invokes Manifest-Error Review The Louisiana Court of Appeal, Fourth Circuit recently reversed...

Louisiana Court: Paid a Percentage, Still an Employee Louisiana Court: Paid a Percentage, Still an Employee
Sep 29, 2026

Alcohol Falls Outside KY’s Presumption of Causation

KY Supreme Court Holds the Statutory Presumption Against Recovery for Intoxicating Substances Does Not Apply to Alcohol The Kentucky Supreme Court has affirmed benefits for a traffic flagger who was...

Alcohol Falls Outside KY’s Presumption of Causation Alcohol Falls Outside KY’s Presumption of Causation
Sep 28, 2026

The Heart Has Wiring, Too

FL First DCA Holds Harlem’s Narrow “Heart Disease” Definition Does Not Bar a Firefighter’s Arrhythmia Claim Under the Heart-Lung Presumption Florida’s First District Court of Appeal has affirmed an award...

The Heart Has Wiring, Too The Heart Has Wiring, Too

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Jul 17, 2020

Florida JCC May Not Deny TD Benefits Because Worker Received Full Pay From His Sick Leave Account

A Florida appellate court recently held that a JCC erred in refusing to award temporary disability benefits to an injured worker based on the fact that the worker received “full...

Florida JCC May Not Deny TD Benefits Because Worker Received Full Pay From His Sick Leave Account Florida JCC May Not Deny TD Benefits Because Worker Received Full Pay From His Sick Leave Account
Jul 15, 2020

West Virginia Court Reverses Medical Findings of Board of Review

Acknowledging the broad latitude afforded the state’s Workers’ Compensation Board of Review when it comes to weighing the medical evidence before it, the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia,...

West Virginia Court Reverses Medical Findings of Board of Review West Virginia Court Reverses Medical Findings of Board of Review
Jul 14, 2020

Alaska Supreme Court Says Employer May Have Access to Employee's Mental Health Records

Under Alaska Stat. §§ 23.30.107 and 23.30.107, an employer is entitled to have access to an injured employee’s mental health records when such access is relevant to the employee’s workers’...

Alaska Supreme Court Says Employer May Have Access to Employee's Mental Health Records Alaska Supreme Court Says Employer May Have Access to Employee's Mental Health Records
Jul 13, 2020

Opinion Mondays: Recent NY Case May Open Door for Compensability of COVID-19 Claims Without Need for Presumption

It may be a long shot, but a recent New York appellate decision may have opened the door, if ever so slightly, to compensability of COVID-19 claims on the basis...

Opinion Mondays: Recent NY Case May Open Door for Compensability of COVID-19 Claims Without Need for Presumption Opinion Mondays: Recent NY Case May Open Door for Compensability of COVID-19 Claims Without Need for Presumption
Jul 10, 2020

In NY Apportionment Claims, Key is Existence of Prior Disability, Not its Cause

A New York appellate court held that since an employer and carrier had prevailed in a 2013 scheduled loss of use (SLU) claim on causation grounds — the WCLJ’s decision...

In NY Apportionment Claims, Key is Existence of Prior Disability, Not its Cause In NY Apportionment Claims, Key is Existence of Prior Disability, Not its Cause
Jul 9, 2020

NY Retail Employee Loses Her "Gray Area" Injury Claim

Again illustrating the discretionary power of a board or commission to make factual findings, a New York appellate court affirmed a decision by the state’s Workers’ Compensation Board denying benefits...

NY Retail Employee Loses Her "Gray Area" Injury Claim NY Retail Employee Loses Her "Gray Area" Injury Claim
Jul 8, 2020

407-Page IME Report Insufficient to Rebut Hawai'i's Presumption of Compensability

Two months ago, I posited that a decision in an old influenza case from Hawaii might give us some indication as to how a COVID-19 presumption of compensability might operate...

407-Page IME Report Insufficient to Rebut Hawai'i's Presumption of Compensability 407-Page IME Report Insufficient to Rebut Hawai'i's Presumption of Compensability
Jul 7, 2020

NY Worker’s Failure to Disclose Religious Activity Does Not Bar Her Receipt of Benefits

An injured worker’s unpaid religious activity within a small church, which included providing occasional sermons, counseling a small group of parishioners, assisting with Bible studies and baptisms, and the like,...

NY Worker’s Failure to Disclose Religious Activity Does Not Bar Her Receipt of Benefits NY Worker’s Failure to Disclose Religious Activity Does Not Bar Her Receipt of Benefits
Jun 30, 2020

Texas High Court Collides with 10th Circuit’s Air Ambulance Decision

In a long, winding, yet carefully-worded decision (with both concurring and dissenting opinions), a divided Supreme Court of Texas held the federal Airline Deregulation Act (ADA) does not preempt Texas’s...

Texas High Court Collides with 10th Circuit’s Air Ambulance Decision Texas High Court Collides with 10th Circuit’s Air Ambulance Decision
Jun 26, 2020

New York Mother's Intentional Tort Action Against Farm Owner Barred

A New York appellate court affirmed a decision of a state trial court that had granted summary judgment to a defendant/farm owner who had been sued by the mother of...

New York Mother's Intentional Tort Action Against Farm Owner Barred New York Mother's Intentional Tort Action Against Farm Owner Barred
Jun 24, 2020

Should Employers Consider Special Release Agreements Before Distributing New Laptops?

Building on an earlier decision, discussed here, a federal district court sitting in Illinois held, in relevant part, that an action filed by an employee against an employer pursuant to...

Should Employers Consider Special Release Agreements Before Distributing New Laptops? Should Employers Consider Special Release Agreements Before Distributing New Laptops?
Jun 22, 2020

Supreme Court of Georgia Jettisons 85-Year-Old Decision Regarding “Off-the-Clock” Injuries

Jettisoning a decision that had stood for more than 85 years, a divided Supreme Court of Georgia overruled Ocean Acc. & Guar. Corp. v. Farr, 180 Ga. 266 (178 SE...

Supreme Court of Georgia Jettisons 85-Year-Old Decision Regarding “Off-the-Clock” Injuries Supreme Court of Georgia Jettisons 85-Year-Old Decision Regarding “Off-the-Clock” Injuries

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