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Workers’ Compensation – Compensable Injury — Subsequent Injury — Relation Back — Medical Certainty
Chaffins v. Tar Heel Capital Corp. At issue in this workers’ compensation action is whether the plaintiff’s injuries to her shoulder and neck are the compensable result of a fall that occurred while she was getting into her car on Oct. 7, 2010 and are the “direct and natural result” of her admittedly compensable employment-related injury suffered on Aug. 1, 2002.
Workers’ Compensation – Insurance – Expiration – No ‘Refusal to Renew’ – First Impression
Zaldana v. Smith Since the defendant-employer’s one-year workers’ compensation policy did not address renewal, and since the employer never asked the defendant-carrier to renew the policy, the carrier did not “refuse to renew” the policy, so the carrier was not required to follow statutory or policy procedures that apply when there is a refusal to renew.
Workers’ Compensation – Voluntary Dismissal – Untimely Re-Filing – No Excusable Neglect
Nieto-Espinoza v. Lowder Construction, Inc. After plaintiff voluntarily dismissed his workers’ compensation claim without prejudice, a paralegal at plaintiff’s counsel’s firm mistakenly noted the dismissal order date. When plaintiff’s counsel failed to re-file within one year, the Industrial Commission properly concluded that this failure was not the result of excusable neglect. [...]
Workers’ Compensation – Change of Condition – Insufficient Showing – Doctor’s Testimony
Wilhite v. Pike Electric, Inc. Although plaintiff’s doctor agreed with plaintiff’s counsel’s assertion that plaintiff was “100 percent” disabled, the doctor’s opinion on this point was not based solely upon plaintiff’s medical condition – which the doctor said was unchanged – or on the doctor’s medical expertise; rather, the doctor agreed with counsel’s assessment ba[...]
Workers’ Compensation – Civil Practice – Interlocutory Appeal – Treating Physician – Motion to Change
Leake v. North Carolina Department of Correction Workers’ compensation is a statutory right, not a constitutional one
Workers’ Compensation – Uninsured Employer – Settlement Agreement – Disapproval – Piercing the Corporate Veil – Attorney’s Fees
Allred v. Exceptional Landscapes, Inc. Even though G.S. § 97-94(b) appears to give an employee of an uninsured employer the option of suing under the Workers’ Compensation Act or “at law,” and even though the parties believed they were settling the employee’s claim “at law,” since the employee had already filed a claim with the Industrial Commission, the Commission had juris[...]
Workers’ Compensation – Appeals – Time Limit Waiver – Disability – Causation – Medical Evidence — Migraines
Williams v. Bank of America Although defendants did not strictly comply with the time limitations in Industrial Commission Rule 701, the Commission had discretion to allow defendants’ appeal to go forward.
Workers’ Compensation – Termination – Constructive Refusal – Progressive Warnings
Antelo v. Wal-Mart Associates, Inc. The Industrial Commission found plaintiff “to be credible in his account of the circumstances of his termination
Workers’ Compensation Medical Testimony – Back Surgery Recommendation – Causation – Depression
Moore v. Bell Senior Living The Industrial Commission gave several reasons, in addition to a defense witness’s possible reliance on an MSNBC.com article, for giving more weight to the opinion of plaintiff’s witness. We affirm the Commission’s award of benefits, including back surgery. Defense witness Dr. Lacin’s testimony can be read as indicating that he read about a spine study[...]
Workers’ Compensation – Average Weekly Wage – Successive Injuries – Disability
Helfrich v. Coca-Cola Bottling Co. Consolidated Plaintiff suffered four work-related injuries, and the Industrial Commission found that he was totally disabled by the last two; however, the Commission based plaintiff’s compensation rate on his average weekly wage at the time of his fourth injury (which was lower than his average weekly wage at the time of his third injury) without disc[...]
Report: NC fails to track, punish uninsured firms
The state agency that decides how thousands of people are compensated for workplace injuries does a poor job of making sure companies obey a law requiring them to carry insurance, the state's internal government watchdog reported Tuesday.
Tort/Negligence – Industrial Commission – Medical Malpractice – Rule 9(j)
Stevenson v. N.C. Dep't of Correction A medical malpractice claim against a state agency filed under the Tort Claims Act must comply with N.C. R. Civ. P. 9(j), which requires a showing that an expert will testify that care was substandard or that there was negligence under res ipsa loquitur. We affirm the dismissal of the complaint without prejudice; we also remand for correction of cl[...]
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Commentary
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