Because settlement agreements ordinarily cover only those claims or rights that are specifically mentioned within the four corners of the agreement itself [see Larson’s Workers’ Compensation Law, § 132.05], attention...
Indiana: After Approval of Settlement Agreement By Board, Estate of Deceased Worker May Not Proceed Against “Employer” in Tort On Basis of Claimed Status as Independent Contractor Indiana: After Approval of Settlement Agreement By Board, Estate of Deceased Worker May Not Proceed Against “Employer” in Tort On Basis of Claimed Status as Independent ContractorAn employer, who mailed a $17,000 settlement check to the address erroneously designated by the claimant in a Compromise & Release Agreement (C&R) settling claimant’s workers’ compensation case, is still...
Employer Gets Lesson in Law of Negotiable Instruments–It Remains Liable When Claimant’s Settlement Check is Misdelivered and Forged Employer Gets Lesson in Law of Negotiable Instruments–It Remains Liable When Claimant’s Settlement Check is Misdelivered and ForgedIn a recent case from Tennessee, Byrom v. Randstad N. Am., L.P., 2012 Tenn. LEXIS 152 (Mar. 8, 2012), a special appeals panel of the state supreme court affirmed a...
Tennessee: Employee Denied Benefits for Unexplained Fall to Level Floor Tennessee: Employee Denied Benefits for Unexplained Fall to Level FloorUnder the “odd-lot” doctrine, accepted in the vast majority of jurisdictions, total disability may be found in the case of workers who, while not altogether incapacitated for work, are so...
Wyoming: High Court Finds Injured HVAC Worker Established “Odd Lot” Status” Wyoming: High Court Finds Injured HVAC Worker Established “Odd Lot” Status”“Danger invites rescue,” wrote Judge Benjamin Cordozo in his typical profound and pithy manner [see Wagner v. International Railway, 232 N.Y. 176, 133 N.E. 437 (1921)]. Cordozo’s pronouncement is generally...
New Hampshire Court Limits Firefighter’s Rule–Slip and Fall Action by Firefighter May Continue Against Homeowner New Hampshire Court Limits Firefighter’s Rule–Slip and Fall Action by Firefighter May Continue Against HomeownerA Special Workers’ Compensation Panel of the Supreme Court of Tennessee recently affirmed a judgment of a trial court that found a worker, a registered nurse, to be permanently and...
Tennessee: Combination of Injury and Cocktail of Medications to Treat Nurse’s Continuing Symptoms Equates to Permanent and Total Disability Award Tennessee: Combination of Injury and Cocktail of Medications to Treat Nurse’s Continuing Symptoms Equates to Permanent and Total Disability AwardIt has long been held that an injured employee should not be allowed to keep the entire amount of his or her workers’ compensation award and also the full common-law...
Federal District Court Grants Motion in Limine to Exclude Evidence of Workers’ Comp Benefits Received By Plaintiff Federal District Court Grants Motion in Limine to Exclude Evidence of Workers’ Comp Benefits Received By PlaintiffOne of the important axioms of workers’ compensation law is that, generally, the employer takes the employee as it finds that employee [see Larson’s Workers’ Compensation Law, § 9.02]. That...
Six-Day Delay in Getting Offshore Worker Medical Treatment For Stroke Supports Aggravation Claim Under Longshore Act Six-Day Delay in Getting Offshore Worker Medical Treatment For Stroke Supports Aggravation Claim Under Longshore ActUntil a number of my high school classmates began to plan our 40th reunion gala several years ago, I had successfully avoided Facebook® and the other social media (I’m still...
Facebook Party Pics Help Defeat Worker’s Claim for Benefits Facebook Party Pics Help Defeat Worker’s Claim for BenefitsIn the great majority of jurisdictions, voluntary intoxication that renders an employee incapable of performing his or her work is a departure from the course of employment sufficient to defeat...
In Spite of Statutory Presumptions, Proof of Positive Drug Test May Not Be Enough to Defeat Claims In Spite of Statutory Presumptions, Proof of Positive Drug Test May Not Be Enough to Defeat ClaimsAn Ohio appellate court recently found that medical evidence presented in a death claim case was too speculative to support the required causal connection between a worker’s fatal heart attack...
Ohio: Cautious Medical Testimony Dooms Death Benefits Claim Related to “Poster Child for Heart Disease” Ohio: Cautious Medical Testimony Dooms Death Benefits Claim Related to “Poster Child for Heart Disease”Virtually every jurisdiction’s comp act has a “by accident” provision of some sort in its definition of compensable injury [for an extended discussion, see Larson’s Workers’ Compensation Law, § 42.01,...
“By Accident,” the Oft-Ignored Provision in Workers’ Compensation Law “By Accident,” the Oft-Ignored Provision in Workers’ Compensation Law