Category: Case comment

Apr 10, 2015

West Virginia Employee’s Unexplained Fall Was Idiopathic And Not Compensable

In a memorandum decision, the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia affirmed the denial of workers’ compensation benefits to an employee who suffered a dislocation of his left knee...

West Virginia Employee’s Unexplained Fall Was Idiopathic And Not Compensable West Virginia Employee’s Unexplained Fall Was Idiopathic And Not Compensable
Apr 9, 2015

PA: Native-American Marriage Ceremony Establishes “Widow’s” Common-law Marriage

On Tuesday, a Pennsylvania appellate court held that a claimant, whose purported husband had been killed in a work-related rollover accident at a ski resort, had presented clear and convincing...

PA: Native-American Marriage Ceremony Establishes “Widow’s” Common-law Marriage PA: Native-American Marriage Ceremony Establishes “Widow’s” Common-law Marriage
Apr 9, 2015

Maryland: Subsequent Injury Fund Assessment Not Reduced Due to Retirement Offset

The 6.5% assessment, payable by a Maryland employer or insurer to the state’s Subsequent Injury Fund on: (i) each award for permanent disability or death, or (ii) each amount payable...

Maryland: Subsequent Injury Fund Assessment Not Reduced Due to Retirement Offset Maryland: Subsequent Injury Fund Assessment Not Reduced Due to Retirement Offset
Apr 8, 2015

Ohio Nurse’s Fall in Hospital ER Was Outside Course and Scope of Employment

A hospital nurse, who fractured her humerus in a fall in her employer’s emergency room when her coat apparently became ensnarled in a wheelchair, did not sustain an injury arising...

Ohio Nurse’s Fall in Hospital ER Was Outside Course and Scope of Employment Ohio Nurse’s Fall in Hospital ER Was Outside Course and Scope of Employment
Apr 6, 2015

Kentucky Contractor Immune From Suit Filed by Employee of Subcontractor

Applying Kentucky’s “up-the-ladder immunity” doctrine, a state appellate court vacated a trial court’s refusal to grant summary judgment in favor of a defendant corporation that had been sued in tort...

Kentucky Contractor Immune From Suit Filed by Employee of Subcontractor Kentucky Contractor Immune From Suit Filed by Employee of Subcontractor
Apr 3, 2015

Virginia Employee Who Cures Light Work Refusal Entitled to Comp Benefits

In a decision that has been not been designated for publication, the Court of Appeals of Virginia held that an employee cured his refusal of selective employment (“light work”) where,...

Virginia Employee Who Cures Light Work Refusal Entitled to Comp Benefits Virginia Employee Who Cures Light Work Refusal Entitled to Comp Benefits
Apr 2, 2015

Federal Court Must Sever and Remand Oklahoma Retaliatory Discharge Claim

On Tuesday, a federal district court in Oklahoma, noting that claims arising under the workers’ compensation laws of any state are not removable under 28 U.S.C.A. § 1445(c), held that...

Federal Court Must Sever and Remand Oklahoma Retaliatory Discharge Claim Federal Court Must Sever and Remand Oklahoma Retaliatory Discharge Claim
Apr 1, 2015

New York: Apportionment Inappropriate Where 1981 Injury Remained Symptomatic But Was Not Disabling

Where Claimant sustained a severe sprain to his right shoulder while working as a police officer in 1981 and returned to work without any schedule of loss (“SLU”) or other...

New York: Apportionment Inappropriate Where 1981 Injury Remained Symptomatic But Was Not Disabling New York: Apportionment Inappropriate Where 1981 Injury Remained Symptomatic But Was Not Disabling
Mar 31, 2015

New York: Long-Term Exposure to Cold Found Insufficient to Support Occupational Disease Claim

A state park grounds-keeper, who worked outside—often in cold conditions—for more than 35 years, and who developed a diabetic ulceration with a secondary formation of osteomyelitis—an infection in a bone...

New York: Long-Term Exposure to Cold Found Insufficient to Support Occupational Disease Claim New York: Long-Term Exposure to Cold Found Insufficient to Support Occupational Disease Claim
Mar 30, 2015

Pennsylvania Nurse Due Partial Benefits Because of Allergy to Hospital Floor Wax

Where a registered nurse suffered multiple allergic attacks caused by exposure to a chemical component of a floor wax product used by the hospital employing her, she was entitled to...

Pennsylvania Nurse Due Partial Benefits Because of Allergy to Hospital Floor Wax Pennsylvania Nurse Due Partial Benefits Because of Allergy to Hospital Floor Wax
Mar 24, 2015

Surveillance Video Sinks Ohio Claimant’s Odd-Lot Claim

Surveillance video spanning a period of almost three years that showed that the claimant, a former dockworker and truck driver, engaged in numerous physical activities, including riding a motorcycle, attending...

Surveillance Video Sinks Ohio Claimant’s Odd-Lot Claim Surveillance Video Sinks Ohio Claimant’s Odd-Lot Claim
Mar 23, 2015

South Carolina Supreme Court Says Exotic Dancer Was an Employee of Nightclub

In a split decision, the Supreme Court of South Carolina, reversing a majority decision by the state’s Court of Appeals, held that an exotic dancer was an employee—not an independent...

South Carolina Supreme Court Says Exotic Dancer Was an Employee of Nightclub South Carolina Supreme Court Says Exotic Dancer Was an Employee of Nightclub