An important piece of legislation was recently introduced in Congress that, if passed, will change the way that Medicare secondary payer rules for certain claims, including workers’ compensation, are applied. The legislation is called the “Strengthening Medicare And Repaying Taxpayers Act of 2011 (a/k/a HR 1063 or the SMART Act) and was sponsored by Congressmen […]

The purpose of the Workers’ Compensation Act (Act) is to protect employees against risks and hazards which are particularly characteristics to the specific work they have been employed to do. An injury is compensable under the Act only if it “arises out of” and “in the course of” the employment. The phrase “in the course […]

Here’s what other personal injury and workers’ compensation lawyers have been talking about over the past few weeks: Jury Instruction Social Networking (Day on Torts) North Carolina: Jail Time for Uninsured Employers (Workers’ Compensation Blog) Cell Phone Use Cited in 24% of Motor Vehicle Crashes (Personal Injury and Social Security Disability blog) NFL Concussion Website […]

An important Illinois workers’ compensation decision was handed down by the Appellate Court of Illinois, Third District, at the end of 2011. At issue in Will County Forest Preserve District v. Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission, No. 3–11–0077WC, was whether a claimant’s shoulder injury qualified as a scheduled loss to the arm or a person-as-a-whole award. […]

While industrial jobs are hard to find in this economy, service-based roles have increased, causing more employees to suffer from Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, a painful disorder that is discomforting and sometimes there can be numbness of the hands. Carpal Tunnel Syndrome is at the forefront of the new workplace and a significant health problem today. Because Carpal Tunnel Syndrome is a common workplace injury, it is considered to be a worker’s compensation claim and there are many workers compensation questions surrounding it.

As the economy limps along, everyone is looking for someone, or something, to blame. Increasingly, workers’ compensation programs have been targeted, with opponents portraying them as an unnecessary expense that undermines local businesses’ attempts to survive in this challenging economic climate. Critics of the workers’ compensation system offer what appear to be, at first glance, […]

The Appellate Court of Illinois, Fourth District, recently considered the denial of a workers’ claim for workers’ compensation benefits where the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission concluded that his Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease was caused solely by his cigarette smoking. In Gross v. Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission, No. 4-10-0615WC, at issue was whether the claimant’s COPD […]

A New Jersey appellate court recently considered a very interesting case where the husband of a woman who died of a pulmonary embolism while working from home for AT&T was seeking workers’ compensation benefits related to her death. He alleged that her pulmonary embolism was caused by her sedentary work lifestyle. As an employee of […]

As we discussed in recent posts, changes to Illinois’ workers’ compensation have been on the horizon for a few months now. One sticking point in recent drafts of the proposed legislation that was of great concern was the proposed change that would require workers to prove that the injuries for which they seek benefits were […]

Here’s what other personal injury and workers’ compensation lawyers have been talking about over the past few weeks: Are Congress’s Med Mal Reform Efforts Unconstitutional? (TortsProfBlog) North Carolina Proposes to Reduce Worker Benefits and Abolish Privacy Rights (Workers’ Compensation Law Blog) The value of a human life and damage caps (Tort Deform) Corporate America Discovers […]