Applying the personal comfort doctrine [see Larson’s Workers’ Compensation Law, § 21.01, et seq.], pursuant to which small, temporary departures from work to administer to personal comforts or convenience are...
PA Court Agrees Injuries Were Compensable under Personal Comfort Doctrine PA Court Agrees Injuries Were Compensable under Personal Comfort DoctrineConstruing the “parking lot” exception to the standard going and coming rule, an Oregon appellate court affirmed an award of benefits to a dental hygienist who sustained injuries when she...
Oregon Employee’s Slip and Fall Claim in “Annex Parking Area” Not Barred by Going and Coming Rule Oregon Employee’s Slip and Fall Claim in “Annex Parking Area” Not Barred by Going and Coming RuleA defendant/co-worker’s act of bringing her dog to the employer’s residential facility for pregnant women to serve as a comfort animal was an activity that had to do with and...
Texas Employee’s Suit Against Co-Worker for Dog Bite is Barred by Exclusivity Texas Employee’s Suit Against Co-Worker for Dog Bite is Barred by ExclusivityIn 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 InjuriesA 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 BloodRecently, I had an occasion to spar with a young reporter who was gathering background information on a COVID-19 piece that she’s preparing. She’s only been in the legal news...
Opinion Mondays: COVID-19 Presumptions Don't Stand Alone in the Workers' Comp World Opinion Mondays: COVID-19 Presumptions Don't Stand Alone in the Workers' Comp WorldIn another case involving Utah's so-called "Allen standard," under which an employee with a preexisting condition faces a heightened standard for proving legal causation, a state appellate court affirmed a...
Utah Court Agrees that Leap from Truck Was Unusual Utah Court Agrees that Leap from Truck Was UnusualReversing a lower appellate court, the Supreme Court of Texas held that because the summary judgment evidence established that a deputy sheriff — who died in a vehicular accident involving...
TX Deputy’s Fatal Injuries While Traveling Home in Patrol Car Were Compensable TX Deputy’s Fatal Injuries While Traveling Home in Patrol Car Were CompensableConstruing the “dual purpose” rule, as utilized in Mississippi, the state’s Court of Appeals, in a deeply divided (6-4) decision, affirmed a decision of the Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission that...
Personal Deviation Sinks Mississippi Salesman’s Claim Personal Deviation Sinks Mississippi Salesman’s ClaimIn a case of first impression, the Supreme Court of Nevada addressed the traveling employee rule and, quoting Larson’s Workers’ Compensation Law, § 25.01, approved of the so-called Larson rule...
Nevada Supreme Court Sets Out Rules Regarding Traveling Employees Nevada Supreme Court Sets Out Rules Regarding Traveling EmployeesIllustrating the narrow rule that Arkansas utilizes to determine if an injury arises out of and in the course of the employment, a state appellate court recently affirmed the denial...
On-Premises Slip and Fall Not Compensable for Arkansas Worker On-Premises Slip and Fall Not Compensable for Arkansas WorkerWhere a hospital worker, who had arrived at her employer’s facility one hour prior to the time she was supposed to clock in (which was her habit), sustained injuries as...
Hospital Worker’s Injuries Exiting Elevator Cannot Support Tort Suit Against Louisiana Employer Hospital Worker’s Injuries Exiting Elevator Cannot Support Tort Suit Against Louisiana Employer