Workers' Compensation

Recent Posts

The Rassp Report
Posted on 26 Jan 2013 by Robert G. Rassp, Esq.

The Rassp Report, a law blog Robert G. Rassp, Esq. Author, " Lawyer's Guide to the AMA Guides and California Workers' Compensation ," 2015 © Lexis Nexis/Matthew Bender & Co. Chairman of the Board of Directors, Friends... Read More

New Seventh Edition of Rassp & Herlick, California Workers’ Compensation Law
Posted on 26 Nov 2012 by LexisNexis Workers' Comp Law Newsroom Staff

The Seventh Edition of Rassp & Herlick, California Workers’ Compensation Law has a new look, a new format, and a new title. With workers’ compensation reform under SB 863 looming, we thought it would be timely to update, revise and restructure... Read More

2011 Year in Review: The Top 10 Workers’ Compensation Events in California
Posted on 6 Dec 2011 by Robert G. Rassp, Esq.

By Robert G. Rassp, Esq. The year 2011 has been noteworthy for many events in our workers’ compensation system and as much for events that did not occur. So this year, we will add a bonus – the Top Five Events In 2011 That Did Not Occur... Read More

Robert Rassp and Stuart Colburn Interview on 19th Annual Workers’ Compensation and Disability Conference Executive Roundtable Session
Posted on 2 Dec 2010 by LexisNexis Workers' Comp Law Newsroom Staff

At the 19th Annual Workers' Compensation and Disability Conference & Expo, Las Vegas, NV, attorney Robert Rassp of California and attorney Stuart Colburn , Shareholder at Downs Stanford in Austin, Texas, were interviewed on their expectations... Read More

California: The PQME Process Runs Amok - A Tragic-Comedy
Posted on 21 Oct 2011 by Robert G. Rassp, Esq.

By Robert G. Rassp, Esq. This story is true. The names were changed to protect the guilty. This story is a great example of what is wrong with the panel QME process under Labor Code sections 4062.1 and 4062.2. There are many cases where claims administrators... Read More

Medications We Frequently See in Workers’ Comp Physician Reports
Posted on 23 Nov 2011 by Robert G. Rassp, Esq.

By Robert G. Rassp, Esq. The following chart lists the brand or common and chemical names of drugs we regularly see in our cases embedded in medical-legal reports, treating physician reports and subpoenaed medical records. Some physicians randomly use... Read More

Opiates, Up Close and Personal
Posted on 16 Jan 2012 by Robert G. Rassp, Esq.

By Robert G. Rassp, Esq. I lost a friend recently. He had an “accidental” overdose of fentanyl. He was 53 years old. He graduated with honors from Harvard Medical School and became a skilled plastic surgeon with a fellowship in hand surgery... Read More

The Real McCoy: Is a “Mental-Physical” Injury Compensable?
Posted on 11 May 2012 by Robert G. Rassp, Esq.

How the California 4th DCA Muddies the Water in County of San Bernardino vs. WCAB (McCoy) 203 Cal. App.4th 1469 , 138 Cal. Rptr.3d 328, 77 Cal. Comp. Cases 219 (2012) By Robert G. Rassp, Esq. An employee has a pre-existing history of migraine headaches... Read More

AMA Guides Tip: Understanding the DRE Gap
Posted on 6 Jul 2012 by Robert G. Rassp, Esq.

By Robert G. Rassp, Esq. There is significant confusion in the California workers' comp community about whether a spinal injury should fall into a DRE category I, II, or III. Carefully read the instructions in the AMA Guides Fifth Edition, Ch... Read More

Catching Up on Some Zs in California – Sleep Disorders
Posted on 20 Feb 2012 by Robert G. Rassp, Esq.

By Robert G. Rassp, Esq. Whole person impairment ratings for sleep disorders in Table 13-4, and the instructions for use on page 317 of the AMA Guides Fifth Edition have created conflicting WCAB panel decisions on whether a sleep disorder can exist... Read More

Something for Everyone: The AMA Guides and the Central Nervous System
Posted on 25 Jan 2012 by Robert G. Rassp, Esq.

By Robert G. Rassp, Esq. AMA’s Guides to the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment , Fifth Edition, Chapter 13 on the central and peripheral nervous system, is one of the most important chapters in the Guides for our purposes as workers’ compensation... Read More

The WCMSA Conundrum in California
Posted on 10 Jul 2012 by Robert G. Rassp, Esq.

By Robert G. Rassp, Esq. The following email string is true, accurate and correct. It is a typical email string between an applicant’s attorney and a defense attorney. We all have cases like this in our inventories. In this case, the Applicant... Read More

How California Handles the WCMSA Process
Posted on 29 Dec 2011 by Robert G. Rassp, Esq.

There is a garden industry that has emerged since 1997 in California of companies who have become “WCMSA specialists”, promoting themselves as experts in developing WCMSA proposals that will pass muster with CMS. Most workers’ compensation... Read More