Workers' Compensation

Recent Posts

If I Only Had a Brain…… DE IAB Rules On Issue Of “Biological Depression” and Brain Impairment
Posted on 14 Aug 2013 by Cassandra Roberts

I love it when people read my mind. I also love it when I have a guest blogger. So today’s post is a happy constellation of circumstance, thanks to Kim Harrison of Marshall, Dennehy. Kim contacted me yesterday on the very case that was slated for... Read More

Crockpots and Paychecks and Dismissals, Oh My! A Recent Course & Scope Ruling from DE
Posted on 30 Jul 2013 by Cassandra Roberts

What do a crockpot and a paycheck have in common? In this case they were two items that brought the claimant into her employer, Boscovs, on her day off. And this being my case on behalf of the employer, the fact that claimant used her employee discount... Read More

Wawa and the Warehouse: Mixed Bag Results on Course & Scope in Delaware
Posted on 4 Oct 2013 by Cassandra Roberts

Today is all about me……. (Just kidding.... well, kinda, sorta)….. I offer you two very recent rulings on course and scope, both of which are mine. In the interest of parity, and lest you think I only profile my wins, we have one which... Read More

Do That To Me One More Time……..Australian Sex Case Reversed As To Course and Scope
Posted on 31 Oct 2013 by Cassandra Roberts

You just have to love that rare and special intersection where our law practice comes smack up against a little afternoon delight. My posts of 4/23/12 (Kangaroo Court) , 4/25/12 (A Roll in the Hay) , and 4/27/12 (A Head-Banging Good Time) heralded the... Read More

Lara’s Theme…. And a Victory For Her Daddy In This DE Compensability Case
Posted on 12 Jul 2013 by Cassandra Roberts

Today we have a guest blogger, claimant lawyer Sheldon Saints. He presents what we lawyers call a Reese case where priors are indicated and the issue is whether a work event aggravated, accelerated or exacerbated the work injury in question. I had asked... Read More

Let It Bleed: A Delaware Case On Venous System Impairment
Posted on 10 Mar 2015 by Cassandra Roberts

I recently put a call out for case law guidance on certain of the more obscure permanency values. One of them was the vascular system. And lo and behold, right on top of things was Walt Schmittinger with John Lowman v. Connectiv Power Delivery , IAB#1188166... Read More

Delaware’s Displaced Worker and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
Posted on 21 Oct 2014 by Cassandra Roberts

While I was in London I heard from my good friend Joe Klusman. Pictured above is the Klusman Klan at what I think is a wedding—aren’t they just dressed to the nines? I am delighted to feature Joe and his crew as a bit of a change from my usual... Read More

Late Breaking News from the Delaware Supreme Court on the Meaning of the Word “Resolved”
Posted on 4 Nov 2015 by Cassandra Roberts

Folks, this is what many of you have been waiting for. The latest word from the Supremes on whether describing the nature of injury on an Agreement as to Compensation tendered by the Employer to include the word “resolved” precludes a future... Read More

You’ve Got Mail……And DE Superior Court Affirms IAB Ruling In Insurance Coverage Case
Posted on 26 Aug 2013 by Cassandra Roberts

For the background, check out my post of 9/6/11, titled A Different Kind of Miracle on 34th Street…. And DE IAB Makes Postage Law . This case had to do with the issue of a work comp policy which had lapsed, with a reinstatement check being mailed... Read More

Section 2353 Extravaganza In Delaware: A Forfeiture Based On Both Intoxication and Failure To Use a Safety Device
Posted on 14 Apr 2015 by Cassandra Roberts

It’s in the bag—urine that is. And can you even begin to guess why this claimant was wearing a bag of urine? I will let the ever-victorious Cheryl Ward tell it (eventually), but before I do, I just cannot contain myself--this case is a veritable... Read More

Action Delayed Is a Continuance Denied In Delaware
Posted on 16 Mar 2015 by Cassandra Roberts

Today’s cautionary tale comes from my partner Natalie Wolf who sent me a copy of Andres Urdaneta v. Trader Joes , IAB# 1419092 (3/10/15)(ORDER) . The matter came to the Board on an opposed request for a continuance being advanced by the employer... Read More

Fail Safe…… and the Failure of a Section 2353(b) Forfeiture Defense in Delaware
Posted on 24 Jul 2014 by Cassandra Roberts

You gotta love Nick Krayer. He initially came to us as “new hot guy” and then he was “newly engaged guy” and now he is a blogger wannabe and Gary Nitsche protégé. Heck, he may even be married by now……... Read More

Rating the Gait: A New Take on Permanency in Delaware?
Posted on 26 Oct 2015 by Cassandra Roberts

Today’s selection is from Don Marston of Doroshow Pasquale et al. Here is what Don has to say: Here is what I believe to be the latest entry in the battle of low back perm vs. lower extremity perm. There are a couple of interesting aspects... Read More

Change of Venue: Downstate Delaware Industrial Accident Board Moves to Dover
Posted on 15 Jan 2016 by Cassandra Roberts

Big doings in Slower Lower……which is what we Northerners affectionately call our lower two counties, also sometimes known as “below the canal.” The current Kent/Sussex County downstate Industrial Accident Board location in Milford... Read More

The Carrot Cake Post.....and a Delicious Outcome on a Firefighter Hearing Loss Claim in Delaware
Posted on 1 Aug 2014 by Cassandra Roberts

How do you solve a problem like Maria? Not only is that one of my favorite songs from The Sound of Music, but that also has to be resounding through the claimant bar in the wake of today’s case, Thomas Kapa v. City of Wilmington , IAB#1406213 (7... Read More