Workers' Compensation

Recent Posts

Nevada: Undocumented Worker Awarded PTD Benefits under "Odd-Lot" Doctrine
Posted on 9 Dec 2020 by Thomas A. Robinson

Quoting Larson's Workers' Compensation Law , the Supreme Court of Nevada, in an unpublished decision, held that a worker's status as an undocumented worker was not relevant to the issue of whether he qualified for permanent total disability... Read More

Nebraska: Truck Driver Awarded Permanent Total Disability Benefits After Ankle Fracture
Posted on 17 May 2020 by Thomas A. Robinson

In a decision not designated for publication, a Nebraska court affirmed a finding by the state's Workers' Compensation Court that a truck driver had sustained permanent total disability due to an ankle fracture. The court noted the deep conflict... Read More

Utah: Worker Entitled to PTD Award in Spite of Return to Work at Higher Income
Posted on 10 Mar 2020 by Thomas A. Robinson

Where a Utah worker sustained catastrophic work-related injuries, including the amputation of both feet, when he accidentally came into contact with a high voltage power line and yet, after a significant period of recuperation was able to return to full... Read More

Ohio: Refusing Rehab Services Does Not Result in Loss of PTD Benefits
Posted on 19 Dec 2019 by Thomas A. Robinson

An Ohio appellate court held that where medical factors alone precluded an injured worker from enjoying sustained remunerative employment, there was no practical purpose for the Commission to consider non-medical factors such as vocational rehabilitation... Read More

Tennessee: Court Awards PTD Benefits for Migraines in Spite of AMA Guides (6th ed.)
Posted on 7 Dec 2016 by Thomas A. Robinson

The Special Workers’ Compensation Appeals Panel of the Supreme Court of Tennessee affirmed an award of PTD benefits to an X-ray technician who contended her migraine headaches were triggered by exposure to chemicals at a medical clinic where she... Read More

California: Two Different Paths to Establishing Permanent and Total Disability
Posted on 18 Jul 2016 by Calif. WCAB Noteworthy Panel Decisions Reporter

In Anaya v. Bay Area Carbide , 2016 Cal. Wrk. Comp. P.D. LEXIS --, a split WCAB panel affirmed the WCJ’s finding that the applicant, who suffered an industrial injury to his lungs, respiratory system, psyche, and in form of diabetes while employed... Read More

Ohio: For PTD Purposes, “Sustained” Employment Need Not Be Full-Time
Posted on 1 Jun 2017 by Thomas A. Robinson

Indicating that permanent total disability is defined as the inability to perform sustained remunerative employment due to the allowed conditions in the claim [Ohio Admin. Code § 4121–3–34(B)(1), emphasis added], the Ohio Supreme Court... Read More

Allergy to Wood Stain Renders Claimant PTD
Posted on 3 Dec 2013 by Martin Klug

Claimant, 56, was found unable to work after he developed an allergic reaction to applying stain , varnish, insulation texture and spraying fire retardants working for a company in the Branson area. Knepper v Midwest Coating of Mid Missouri, 2013 Mo WCLR... Read More

Missouri: Commission Expands Claims Against Fund
Posted on 20 Dec 2011 by Martin Klug

An employee may collect benefits from the second injury fund, even though the underlying medical condition considered by itself may not qualify for the minimum statutory threshold. The Commission now clarifies what it perceives as a common “misperception”... Read More

Tennessee: Employer Saddled With 90 Percent of PTD Award Where Preexisting Condition Prevented Surgery
Posted on 1 Feb 2018 by Thomas A. Robinson

A trial court properly apportioned 10 percent of a permanently and totally disabled worker’s disability to the Second Injury Fund where it found that the worker sustained a 90 percent PPD as a result of a shoulder and arm injury, but also found... Read More

Increase in California Average Weekly Wage to Boost 2013 Workers’ Compensation Benefits
Posted on 8 Jun 2012 by California Workers' Compensation Institute

California’s State Average Weekly Wage (SAWW) rose more than 5.5% from $1003.55 to $1,059.38 in the 12 months ending March 31, 2012, which according to the California Workers’ Compensation Institute (CWCI), will boost minimum and maximum temporary... Read More

Utah: High Court Reiterates Meaning of “Basic Work Activities” for Purposes of PTD Benefits
Posted on 28 Jul 2017 by Thomas A. Robinson

Generally speaking, in order to qualify for permanent total disability benefits, the Utah employee must show, in relevant part, that he or she has an impairment or combination of impairments that limit the employee’s ability to do “basic work... Read More

California: Labor Code Section 4662: Conclusive or Rebuttable Presumption?
Posted on 10 Aug 2017 by LexisNexis Workers' Comp Law Newsroom Staff

Everyone in the workers’ compensation community has heard of the paradigm changing package of laws brought about by SB899 in 2004 and SB863 in 2013, but sometimes a new law slips under the radar radically tweaking a particular aspect of the rules... Read More

Oklahoma: Multiple Injury Trust Fund Liable for Combined Injuries to Different Body Parts
Posted on 29 Sep 2017 by Thomas A. Robinson

In a deeply divided decision, the Supreme Court of Oklahoma held that a workers’ compensation claimant, who sustained an injury to his left shoulder in 2013, was a “physically impaired person,” as defined in Okla. Stat. tit. 85A, §... Read More

Increase in California Average Weekly Wage to Boost 2013 Workers’ Compensation Benefits
Posted on 8 Jun 2012 by California Workers' Compensation Institute

California’s State Average Weekly Wage (SAWW) rose more than 5.5% from $1003.55 to $1,059.38 in the 12 months ending March 31, 2012, which according to the California Workers’ Compensation Institute (CWCI), will boost minimum and maximum temporary... Read More