Category: Case comment

Nov 11, 2020

Ohio Staff Hearing Officer is to Utilize Equitable Principles in Reviewing VSSR Settlement Agreements

Where Ohio Adm.Code 4121-3-20(F)(1) provides that a staff hearing officer (“SHO”) is to determine whether an agreed settlement of a violation of a specific safety regulation (VSSR) application is “appropriate...

Ohio Staff Hearing Officer is to Utilize Equitable Principles in Reviewing VSSR Settlement Agreements Ohio Staff Hearing Officer is to Utilize Equitable Principles in Reviewing VSSR Settlement Agreements
Nov 10, 2020

Virginia Court Says Employee’s MRSA Was Consequential Injury Related to Earlier Work-Related Dog Bite

Quoting Larson’s Workers’ Compensation Law, § 10.01, a Virginia appellate court affirmed a decision by the state’s Workers’ Compensation Commission that awarded workers’ compensation benefits to an employee who developed...

Virginia Court Says Employee’s MRSA Was Consequential Injury Related to Earlier Work-Related Dog Bite Virginia Court Says Employee’s MRSA Was Consequential Injury Related to Earlier Work-Related Dog Bite
Nov 5, 2020

Broad Release in VSSR Settlement Agreement Sinks Subsequent Action for Spoliation of Evidence

An Ohio appellate court recently affirmed a decision of a state trial court that granted summary judgment in favor of an employer in a civil action filed against it by...

Broad Release in VSSR Settlement Agreement Sinks Subsequent Action for Spoliation of Evidence Broad Release in VSSR Settlement Agreement Sinks Subsequent Action for Spoliation of Evidence
Nov 3, 2020

GA Court: Establishing Res Judicata is Difficult as to Medical Issues

Stressing that because a claimant’s course of treatment is fluid and may evolve over time as either the claimant’s condition changes, the recommendations of the authorized treating physician change, or...

GA Court: Establishing Res Judicata is Difficult as to Medical Issues GA Court: Establishing Res Judicata is Difficult as to Medical Issues
Nov 2, 2020

Massachusetts High Court Adopts New Jurisdictional Test for Extra-Territorial Injuries

In a case of first impression, the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts held that the jurisdictional test for extra-territorial injuries employed by the review Board of the Department of Industrial...

Massachusetts High Court Adopts New Jurisdictional Test for Extra-Territorial Injuries Massachusetts High Court Adopts New Jurisdictional Test for Extra-Territorial Injuries
Oct 30, 2020

Louisiana Temp Worker Injured Two Hours After Reporting for Work May Not Sue Borrowing Employer in Tort

A Louisiana appellate court reversed a decision by a state trial court that had denied a corporate defendant’s motion for summary judgment in a negligence action filed against it by...

Louisiana Temp Worker Injured Two Hours After Reporting for Work May Not Sue Borrowing Employer in Tort Louisiana Temp Worker Injured Two Hours After Reporting for Work May Not Sue Borrowing Employer in Tort
Oct 28, 2020

Massachusetts High Court Says Comp Insurer Need Not Pay for Medical Marijuana

Yesterday, in a decision that is certain to draw attention in a host of other jurisdictions, the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts, quoting Larson’s Workers’ Compensation Law, held a workers’...

Massachusetts High Court Says Comp Insurer Need Not Pay for Medical Marijuana Massachusetts High Court Says Comp Insurer Need Not Pay for Medical Marijuana
Oct 27, 2020

NY Board May Not Employ "Novel" Standard for Work-at-Home Injuries

In a decision that has important ramifications for other claims filed in the Empire State by employees working from home due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a state appellate court reversed...

NY Board May Not Employ "Novel" Standard for Work-at-Home Injuries NY Board May Not Employ "Novel" Standard for Work-at-Home Injuries
Oct 23, 2020

Foreseeability of Ohio Worker's Depression is Not a Factor in Judging Compensability of Mental Condition

An Ohio appellate court reversed a trial court’s determination that an injured worker had not sustained a compensable mental injury–Depressive Disorder, not otherwise specified–stemming from her original 2007 knee injury,...

Foreseeability of Ohio Worker's Depression is Not a Factor in Judging Compensability of Mental Condition Foreseeability of Ohio Worker's Depression is Not a Factor in Judging Compensability of Mental Condition
Oct 22, 2020

Virginia Supreme Court Rejects Lower Court's Attempt to Clarify "Sudden Mechanical or Structural Change" Rule

Reversing an earlier decision of the state’s Court of Appeals, the Supreme Court of Virginia held that the phrase “injury by accident” linked two discrete concepts—an injury and an accident—that...

Virginia Supreme Court Rejects Lower Court's Attempt to Clarify "Sudden Mechanical or Structural Change" Rule Virginia Supreme Court Rejects Lower Court's Attempt to Clarify "Sudden Mechanical or Structural Change" Rule
Oct 20, 2020

Land and Mobile Home Purchased With Workers' Comp Proceeds by NC Bankruptcy Debtor is Not Exempt

The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of North Carolina, construing the state statute on exemptions, held that a Chapter 13 Debtor was not entitled to claim an exemption...

Land and Mobile Home Purchased With Workers' Comp Proceeds by NC Bankruptcy Debtor is Not Exempt Land and Mobile Home Purchased With Workers' Comp Proceeds by NC Bankruptcy Debtor is Not Exempt
Oct 19, 2020

Florida Utility Was Not Statutory Employer of Injured Workers of Maintenance Company

The obligation of a Florida public utility to maintain its facilities and equipment arose out of an administrative regulation and, therefore, was not the sort of obligation that could be...

Florida Utility Was Not Statutory Employer of Injured Workers of Maintenance Company Florida Utility Was Not Statutory Employer of Injured Workers of Maintenance Company