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 an increase in a worker’s award of benefits for a back injury. Case: ACNR Resources Inc. v. Knight, No. 24-ICA-121, 09/04/2024, unpublished. Facts: Matthew Knight…

West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals overturned an award of permanent partial disability benefits to an injured mine worker, finding that neither doctor who provided impairment ratings had performed valid…

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 Case: Sesco v. Brooks Run South Mining LLC, No. 24-ICA-138, 09/04/2024, unpublished.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 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 Case: Consol PA Coal Co. v. OWCP, No. 23-1892, 09/17/2024, unpublished.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 an increase in a worker’s permanent partial disability award for a shoulder injury. Case: ACNR Resources Inc. v. Martie, No. 23-386, 09/23/2024, published. Facts: Patrick Martie…

The West Virginia Supreme Court upheld a finding that a roofer’s rare blood disorder was linked to his occupational exposure to benzene. Case: Lindy & Fred Seco General Revokable Trust v.

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…

West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld a determination that an injured worker was entitled to a 0% permanent partial disability award. Case: Gibson v. Greenbrier Valley Medical Center, No. 24-ICA-160,…

West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld a 1% permanent partial disability award for a worker’s knee injury. Case: Davis v. Charleston Area Medical Center Inc., No. 24-ICA-131, 10/01/2024, published. Facts: Thomas…

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 for occupational pneumoconiosis. Case: Lucey v. Murray…

The Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry's Compliance, Records and Training (CRT) unit has created a new training video to assist administrators who file denials of primary liability. The video provides information about: The…

The Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry is hiring an attorney to represent the Special Compensation Fund in workers’ compensation proceedings. The attorney will also provide legal advice to department staff…

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 starting Aug. 1, a new penalty of $500 can be assessed to health care provider agents who violate certain laws relating…

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…

In a case of first impression, the Colorado Court of Appeals ruled that when assessing whether a worker is at maximum medical improvement, a physician may consider all relevant body…

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…

The Texas Workers' Compensation Research and Evaluation Group released a new report on access to care in the Lone Star State's workers' compensation system between 2017 and 2022. This report measures the availability…

The Texas Division of Workers’ Compensation is hosting a webinar on May 22 to discuss presiding officer directives. The division said the program will focus on the origin of presiding officer…

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 revived an injured school district employee’s challenge to an administrative law judge’s determination that she was barred from pursuing compensation for some alleged conditions and dates…

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…

The Texas Division of Workers’ Compensation is holding a webinar Wednesday to cover how to complete wage statements. The division said the training will focus on DWC Form-003 and DWC Form-003SD.

The Insurance Council of Texas is holding a webinar Aug. 12 that will cover the use of social media when resolving workers’ compensation claims. Marci Reading, vice president of business development…

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 posted for public comment a copy of the proposed 2025 agenda for its Workers’ Compensation Research and Evaluation Group. The group is proposing three projects…

The Texas Division of Workers’ Compensation is holding its regular quarterly stakeholder meetings for carriers and providers Sept. 5. The provider quarterly meeting will cover topics including designated doctor billing rules,…

The Texas Division of Workers’ Compensation announced that the discount interest rate will drop by more than a full percentage point during the final fiscal quarter. The division said any interest…

The Texas Division of Workers’ Compensation is hosting a free webinar Nov. 7 to cover how to become a treating doctor. The program will teach attendees the requirements to become a…

The Texas Division of Workers' Compensation on Wednesday announced that it adopted the 2025 agenda for its Workers' Compensation Research and Evaluation Group. The research group will study the feasibility and…

All but four of the 130 insurance carriers that the Texas Division of Workers' Compensation evaluated through its performance-based oversight assessment scored average or better. The division on Thursday reported that…

A Texas appellate court dismissed an insurance carrier’s challenge to a trial judge’s finding of compensability for a worker’s death, ruling that the judgment entered had been void. Case: Texas Mutual…

A Texas appellate court denied an injured worker's petition for mandamus relief of a trial judge’s order compelling him to arbitrate a negligence claim against his nonsubscribing employer. Adrian Murillo worked…

A federal appellate court ruled that an insurance carrier could not void a policy based on an employer’s misrepresentation, nor could it maintain a breach-of-contract claim against a marketing agent for failing to…

The Maryland Appellate Court overturned an award of benefits to a financial adviser for his alleged occupational disease from mold exposure. Case: In the Matter of Morgan Stanley and Co. Inc.,…

The U.S. Department of Energy picked a new company to administer workers’ compensation claims from the Hanford nuclear storage facility in Washington state, according to a report by the Tri-City…

The Washington Court of Appeals upheld the denial of an injured worker’s request to reopen her claim due to her failure to timely perfect her appeal of the decision of…

The Washington State Department of Labor and Industries fined the state wildlife department $200,400 for two incidents that killed one worker and hospitalized another. Mary Valentine, a 48-year-old Department of Fish…

The Washington Court of Appeals overturned a jury verdict finding that a flight attendant was entitled to benefits for her COVID-19 infection, since the jury had been erroneously instructed on…

The Washington State Department of Labor and Industries fined a cabinet maker $187,000 after finding that the company did not fix safety violations that led to similar citations in 2019. L&I…

Workers’ compensation defense firm Reinisch Wilson Weier is holding a one-day educational seminar in November that will cover case law affecting the Washington state workers’ compensation system, the independent medical…

The Washington Court of Appeals ruled that a property owner was not entitled to summary judgment dismissing a civil suit brought by an injured employee of a contractor hired to…

This one-hour session will provide an overview and analysis of recent case law focused on Almaraz/Guzman ratings.

The California non-attorney Hearing Representative and Lien Representative is required to know how to prepare for and litigate a workers’ compensation case or lien claim before a WCAB Judge. This…

Advanced Litigation: Pre-Trial, Discovery and MSC - Part (1/2)…

The California Workers' Compensation Appeals Board is moving lien claims to the Oxnard district office to cut down on the amount of claims that have piled up at Los Angeles,…