D.C. Employee’s Injuries During Lunch-Time Travel Via Electric Scooter Found Not Compensable

Establishing “Personal Comfort” Activity Is Only Half the Battle, says OR Court

Stressing that the focus of the personal comfort doctrine was to determine if an employee’s actions occurred during the course of the employment, the Court of Appeals of Oregon held...

PA Court Agrees Injuries Were Compensable under Personal Comfort Doctrine

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...

Oregon Employee Recovers Benefits Following Explosion of Energy Drink

In a case with a rather bizarre fact pattern, an Oregon appellate court affirmed a decision by the state’s Workers’ Compensation Board that awarded benefits to a painter who sustained...

D.C. Subway Manager’s Injuries During Two-Hour Break Found Compensable

Quoting Larson’s Workers’ Compensation Law, § 21.02, the District of Columbia Court of Appeals vacated a decision of the D.C.’s Compensation Review Board (CRB) that had denied workers’ compensation benefits...

No Recovery for Home-Based Workers’ Comp Adjuster Who Trips Over Her Dog

Deeply Divided Florida Court Says Risk of Tripping Did Not Arise Out of Employment Emphasizing that eligibility for workers’ compensation benefits turns on whether the employment led to the risk...

Tell-Tale Web Page on Employee’s Blackberry Spells Doom for South Dakota Comp Claim

An employee’s injuries sustained in a one-car auto accident while he drove down a dead-end road some 2.5 miles from his office did not arise out of and in the...

Kentucky High Court Splits in Case Involving Personal Comfort Doctrine

In a split decision dealing with the application of the personal comfort doctrine described in Larson’s Workers’ Compensation Law, § 21.01, et seq., a majority of the Supreme Court of...

“Dog Bites Man”: Pennsylvania Court Affirms Award for Worker Bitten By Co-Worker’s Canine

Yesterday, a Pennsylvania appellate court affirmed an order by the state’s Workers’ Compensation Appeal Board awarding workers’ compensation benefits to a worker who sustained facial lacerations and permanent scarring when...

Arkansas: Fall in Company Parking Lot While Returning Lunch Box is Not Compensable

Illustrating the significant deference given to the Commission’s factual findings, an Arkansas appellate court recently affirmed the denial of benefits to an employee who sustained injuries when he slipped and...