The Intermediate Court of Appeals of West Virginia upheld the denial of benefits to a widow, finding she failed to prove that her husband's death was caused by his occupational exposure…

The West Virginia Supreme Court upheld an award of benefits for a janitor who contracted Legionnaires’ disease. Case: Scottish Rite Bodies of Charleston v. Weese, No. 22-0427, 06/10/2024, published. Facts: Thomas W. Weese worked…

The West Virginia Supreme Court ruled that a former coal miner was entitled to an increased impairment award for the worsening of his occupational pneumoconiosis, even though he had undergone…

A divided West Virginia Supreme Court ruled that the doctrine of collateral estoppel did not bar a worker who failed to prove his occupational disease claim from seeking a civil…

A divided West Virginia Supreme Court upheld the closure of a worker’s claim for temporary total disability benefits and the denial of his request to expand the scope of his…

The West Virginia Intermediate Court of Appeals ruled that the Workers’ Compensation Board of Review erred in applying the standard of compensability for occupational pneumoconiosis to a widow’s claim for…

The West Virginia Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld the denial of additional treatment and temporary total disability benefits for an injured mine worker. Case: Polinski v. Consol Bailey Mine WV, No.

The West Virginia Intermediate Court of Appeals ruled that the Workers’ Compensation Board of Review erred in finding that a worker who lost part of his leg was not entitled…

The West Virginia Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld the denial of a worker’s claim for injuries allegedly suffered while assisting a colleague having a medical emergency. Case: Hollandsworth v. Workforce West…

The West Virginia Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld a determination that an injured worker was entitled to additional physical therapy for her leg injury. Case: ACNR Resources Inc. v. Goff, No.

The West Virginia Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld a denial of benefits to a worker for an alleged back injury. Case: Cecil v. Pepsi-Cola Metropolitan Bottling Co., No. 24-ICA-53, 07/30/2024, unpublished. Facts:…

A divided West Virginia Supreme Court upheld an increase in a worker’s award for a back injury. Case: Murray American Energy Inc. v. Falcone, No. 22-0489, 08/01/2024, published. Facts: Brandon Falcone suffered…

The West Virginia Supreme Court upheld the denial of a worker's request for additional benefits and the expansion of her claim. Case: Martin v. Wal-Mart Associates Inc., No. 23-115, 08/01/2024, published. Facts: Irene Martin…

The West Virginia Supreme Court upheld the denial of a worker’s request for additional treatment and benefits, and the expansion of his claim. Case: Hankins v. Sprouting Farms Corp., No. 22-919,…

The West Virginia Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld the denial of a worker’s request to expand her claim to include additional conditions. Case: Amane v. Pas Parent Inc., No. 23-109, 08/01/2024,…

The West Virginia Supreme Court upheld an award for an additional 22% permanent partial disability to a worker for her ankle injury. Case: Butler v. D&D Quality Care Inc., No. 23-147, 08/01/2024,…

The West Virginia Supreme Court upheld the expansion of a worker’s claim to include additional conditions. Case: McKinney v. Little General Store Inc., No. 23-117, 08/01/2024, published. Facts: Marilyn McKinney worked for…

The West Virginia Supreme Court upheld a denial of permanent partial disability benefits to an injured worker. Case: Underwood v. West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources, No. 23-118, 08/01/2024,…

A divided West Virginia Supreme Court summarily affirmed a finding that a worker had suffered a worsening of his condition attributable to a compensable lumbar injury. Case: ANR Inc. v. Stover,…

West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld a determination that a worker had a 0% impairment despite his many years of occupational exposure to coal dust. Case: Jarrell v. Blackhawk Mining…

The West Virginia Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld a finding that a worker was entitled to an additional permanent partial disability award. Case: Zavala v. Concrete Pipe & Precast Martinsburg, No.

West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld the denial of a worker’s request to expand his claim and for authorization for a magnetic resonance imaging scan. Case: Hill v. Lowe's Home…

West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld a 1% permanent partial disability award for a worker’s knee injury. Case: Sesco v. Brooks Run South Mining LLC, No. 24-ICA-138, 09/04/2024, unpublished. Facts: Granville…

West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld the denial of a widow’s claim for benefits, finding her late husband’s occupational pneumoconiosis had not materially contributed to his death. Sherman Bailey received…

West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals overturned the closure of a worker’s claim and ordered that additional evidence be developed as to his preexisting conditions and whether they contributed to his…

West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld an award of benefits to the widow of a worker suffering from chronic myelomonocytic leukemia before contracting COVID-19 and dying. Case: PPG Industries Inc.

A federal appellate court upheld an award of black lung benefits for a longtime coal miner. Case: Consol PA Coal Co. v. OWCP, No. 23-1892, 09/17/2024, unpublished. Facts: Stephen Hela worked as an…

The West Virginia Supreme Court upheld an award of occupational disease-dependent death benefits to a worker’s widow. Case: Appalachian Boiler & Fab LLC v. Caruthers, No. 23-345, 09/23/2024, published. Facts: Johnny A.

The West Virginia Supreme Court upheld the denial of a request to expand the scope of a worker’s claim and for additional imaging. Case: Cook v. Cecil I. Walker Machinery Co.,…

The West Virginia Supreme Court upheld a denial of benefits for a hospital maintenance worker’s COVID-19 infection. Case: Morrill v. Lifepoint Hospitals Inc., No. 23-461, 09/23/2024, published. Facts: Curtis Morrill was a…

West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld the denial of a referral to a neurosurgeon for evaluation of a condition that had not been accepted as compensable in a worker’s claim. Case:…

West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld a determination that a worker was not entitled to an increase in his permanent partial disability award. Case: Alban v. West Virginia Division of…

A federal appellate court upheld the summary dismissal of an injured mechanic’s claim for disability discrimination. Case: Goosen v. Minnesota Department of Transportation, No. 23-2360, 06/24/2024, published. Facts: Robert Wayne Goosen worked…

The Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry announced that it will open registration Monday for its one-day Workers’ Compensation Summit set for Oct. 29. Session topics will include a legislative update…

The Minnesota Court of Appeals upheld the summary dismissal of a worker’s civil suit against his supervisor for his injuries from motor vehicle accident caused when the supervisor fell asleep…

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis enacted a bill that will increase the cap on combined temporary disability and permanent partial disability benefits by 100% or more. Rep. Lindsey Daugherty, D-Arvada Polis on…

The Colorado Court of Appeals ruled that an administrative law judge had jurisdiction to determine whether an employer made an overpayment after it issued an admission of liability for a specific…

The Colorado Supreme Court ruled that when a worker is injured in the course of his employment by the acts of an underinsured third-party tortfeasor, workers’ compensation exclusivity does not bar him…

A divided Texas appellate court overturned a grant of summary judgment finding that an injured police officer was entitled to uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage under her own policy for an accident…

A Texas appellate court ruled that a public school district was immune from civil liability to a former employee on her retaliatory discharge claim. Case: Conroe Independent School District v. Osuna,…

A divided Texas appellate court upheld the summary dismissal of a widow’s intentional tort claims arising from her husband’s fatal motor vehicle accident in Oklahoma. Justin Schneider worked for QES Pressure…

A Texas appellate court ruled that a temporary employment provider’s employee could not pursue a civil remedy against his employer’s client for an on-the-job injury. Case: Waeli v. BWFS Industries LLC,…

A Texas appellate court ruled that a nonsignatory to an agreement could not compel arbitration of a family’s wrongful death claims despite its purported adoption of an occupational injury benefit…

A Texas appellate court ruled that a worker’s death in a motorcycle accident while retrieving his company-issued laptop from home was not compensable. Michael Evans was a safety consultant for Xcel…

A Texas appellate court rejected a worker’s constitutional challenge to the 90-day deadline for contesting a previously assessed maximum medical improvement date. Case: Engel v. Texas Department of Insurance, No, 03-23-00077-CV, 07/17/2024,…

The Texas Division of Workers’ Compensation posted proposed changes to its pharmacy benefit rules that remove obsolete provisions and update reference language for consistency with other regulations. “When the rules were originally adopted,…

The Texas Division of Workers’ Compensation is accepting comments on a proposal to correct a duplicate regulatory section title. The DWC is proposing to rename Texas Administrative Code Section 147.10 “Commutation…

A Texas appellate court ruled that an employer’s alleged administrative violations did not prevent it from presenting and prevailing on its exclusivity defense. Robert Lane worked for Odle Inc. After he allegedly suffered…

Benefits are increasing by about 3.8% for injuries sustained on or after Oct. 1, according to information that the Texas Division of Workers’ Compensation posted on its website. The maximum temporary…

The Texas Division of Workers’ Compensation posted its audit plan for the fiscal year ending in 2025. The DWC said 2025 audits will focus on timely and accurate benefit payments, timely…