Category: Case comment

Sep 9, 2020

NY Claimant Must Show Causal Connection Between Employment and Medical Condition Even When Employer Fails to Controvert Claim

While an employer's failure to file a timely notice of controversy precludes the employer from submitting evidence that the claimant did not sustain accidental injuries or that the alleged injuries...

NY Claimant Must Show Causal Connection Between Employment and Medical Condition Even When Employer Fails to Controvert Claim NY Claimant Must Show Causal Connection Between Employment and Medical Condition Even When Employer Fails to Controvert Claim
Sep 8, 2020

Ohio Claimant May Not Receive PTD Benefits Where He Abandons the Workforce

The Supreme Court of Ohio affirmed a lower’s court’s decision that an injured worker was not entitled to permanent total disability (PTD) benefits because he had abandoned the workforce [State...

Ohio Claimant May Not Receive PTD Benefits Where He Abandons the Workforce Ohio Claimant May Not Receive PTD Benefits Where He Abandons the Workforce
Sep 2, 2020

Kansas Widow Rebuts Presumption of Marijuana Intoxication

Affirming a decision of a split panel of the state’s Court of Appeals, the Supreme Court of Kansas sustained an award of death benefits to the widow of a worker...

Kansas Widow Rebuts Presumption of Marijuana Intoxication Kansas Widow Rebuts Presumption of Marijuana Intoxication
Sep 1, 2020

Colorado Court: Pilot Not Engaged in Personal Deviation in Spite of Elevated Alcohol Level in His Blood

A Colorado appellate court recently affirmed a decision by the state's Industrial Claim Appeals Office that found an airline pilot’s widow and children were entitled to survivor benefits after the...

Colorado Court: Pilot Not Engaged in Personal Deviation in Spite of Elevated Alcohol Level in His Blood Colorado Court: Pilot Not Engaged in Personal Deviation in Spite of Elevated Alcohol Level in His Blood
Aug 31, 2020

Opinion Mondays: Is California's "Posse Law" Passé?

In a case involving an utterly bizarre fact pattern, as well as a legal battle stretching out over the bulk of a decade, the Supreme Court of California, in a...

Opinion Mondays: Is California's "Posse Law" Passé? Opinion Mondays: Is California's "Posse Law" Passé?
Aug 27, 2020

CT High Court Says Transplanted Heart is Not a Prosthetic Device

The Supreme Court of Connecticut held that a transplanted heart is not in the nature of a prosthetic device. Accordingly, where a police officer sustained a compensable rare autoimmune disease...

CT High Court Says Transplanted Heart is Not a Prosthetic Device CT High Court Says Transplanted Heart is Not a Prosthetic Device
Aug 26, 2020

CT Municipality Liable for Benefits Owed to Employee of Uninsured Roofing Subcontractor

The Supreme Court of Connecticut, in a split decision, held that, under Conn. Gen. Stat. § 31-291, the city of Bridgeport was the “principal employer” of an employee of an...

CT Municipality Liable for Benefits Owed to Employee of Uninsured Roofing Subcontractor CT Municipality Liable for Benefits Owed to Employee of Uninsured Roofing Subcontractor
Aug 25, 2020

Delaware Worker's Tort Suit Against TPA May Continue

A civil action filed by an injured worker against a third-party claims administrator for alleged improper claims handling may proceed, held a Delaware court recently [see Ferrari v. Helmsman Mgmt....

Delaware Worker's Tort Suit Against TPA May Continue Delaware Worker's Tort Suit Against TPA May Continue
Aug 21, 2020

Special Endorsement in NC Commercial Auto Policy Sinks Employer/Insurer's Subrogation Claim

The North Carolina Supreme Court, in a split decision, reversed an earlier decision by the state's Court of Appeals, and held that because the employer's commercial auto policy contained an...

Special Endorsement in NC Commercial Auto Policy Sinks Employer/Insurer's Subrogation Claim Special Endorsement in NC Commercial Auto Policy Sinks Employer/Insurer's Subrogation Claim
Aug 20, 2020

Washington Staffing Firm Was Not Employer For Purposes of Safety Violations

A Washington appellate court reversed a determination by a state superior court that had determined that a staffing firm, which assigned temporary workers to a specific entity, could be liable...

Washington Staffing Firm Was Not Employer For Purposes of Safety Violations Washington Staffing Firm Was Not Employer For Purposes of Safety Violations
Aug 18, 2020

Pennsylvania Well Owner and Service Provider Were Not Statutory Employers of Truck Driver Making Delivery

In a split decision, the Superior Court of Pennsylvania held that a well owner and another firm that provided well services to the well owner were not the statutory employers...

Pennsylvania Well Owner and Service Provider Were Not Statutory Employers of Truck Driver Making Delivery Pennsylvania Well Owner and Service Provider Were Not Statutory Employers of Truck Driver Making Delivery
Aug 14, 2020

Minnesota Chiropractor's Inaction Causes Loss of $9K in Medical Care Charges

The Supreme Court of Minnesota recently held that a health care provider who voluntarily declined to intervene in a pending workers’ compensation proceeding after receiving timely and adequate notice of...

Minnesota Chiropractor's Inaction Causes Loss of $9K in Medical Care Charges Minnesota Chiropractor's Inaction Causes Loss of $9K in Medical Care Charges