FL - Court Allows Estate to Sue Team Doctor Over Player's Death
05/19/2026 | 0
A Florida appellate court affirmed a trial court ruling allowing the estate of a minor league baseball player to pursue a medical malpractice claim against a team doctor, holding that state law applies and does not bar the claim under workers’ compensation exclusivity principles.
Ryan Costello was a professional baseball player for two Florida-based minor league affiliates of the Minnesota Twins.
In March 2019, the Twins arranged for Costello to undergo a medical evaluation in Fort Myers to determine whether he was medically fit to participate in the team's spring training pro...
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A New York appellate court upheld the summary dismissal of a worker’s Labor Law claims against the owners of a private residence.
Case: Kingstone Insurance Co. v. Barranco, No. 2022-00623, 04/29/2026, published.
Facts: Alejandro Perez Barranco worked for LSM Electrical Contracting Inc. He allegedly suffered injuries when he fell from a ladder while working on the outside wall of a one-family residence in Brooklyn owned by Marat and Marina Fronshtein.
Marat Fromshtein was the owner of LSM.
Procedural history: Barranco filed suit against the Fronshteins, asserting claims for violations...
A New York appellate court upheld the denial of summary judgment on a worker’s Labor Law claim based on his inconsistent accounts of the alleged accident.
Case: Ramirez v. 2500 Webb LLC, No. 813626/21, 04/28/2026, published.
Facts: Moises Ramirez filed a Labor Law claim asserting that he suffered injuries while disassembling a sidewalk bridge when a pipe fell while a co-worker disconnected it from a vertical post.
Ramirez also filed a workers’ compensation claim based on the same alleged accident, and on his claim form, he stated it was a vertical support pipe that struck him.
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A federal appellate court ruled that a volunteer firefighter injured while responding to a boat fire on the Hudson River was entitled to the warranty of seaworthiness and that his receipt of compensation under New York’s Volunteer Firefighters’ Benefit Law did not bar his negligence claim under general maritime law.
Case: In re: In the Matter of the Complaint of Verplanck Fire District, No. 23-1218, 04/30/2026, published.
Facts: Troy Dyckman served as a volunteer firefighter with the Verplanck Fire District. Dyckman injured his foot while traveling aboard a ship owned b...
I have gone through a difficult period. Over the last year, I lost a sister-in-law, two brothers-in-law, three of my closest friends, and several close friends. The losses came one after another, each arriving before I had finished grieving the last.
The movie "Coco" resonates with me because it reflects how I choose to handle loss: by holding on to the good, remembering who people were at their best, and keeping those memories alive. It is my way of carrying them forward.
Every loss has also reminded me of something I came to understand slowly, over decades of professiona...
West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld a determination that a mine worker’s arm injuries were compensable despite his initial report of a nonwork-related accident.
Case: ACNR Resources v. Banco, No. 25-ICA-386, 05/01/2026, published.
Facts: Thomas Banco worked for ACNR Resources as a compliance foreman and fireboss.
On May 5, 2025, he sought medical treatment for pain and swelling in his left elbow. He said he slipped and fell on his elbow while he was chasing his granddaughter the day before.
An X-ray showed a proximal avulsion fracture and findings suggesting a ...
The California Division of Workers' Compensation released a Newsline to clarify the use of request for authorization forms under new utilization review rules that took effect April 1.
Rules the division said were adopted to streamline and standardize the medical treatment authorization process formally define a request for authorization as a written request for a specific course of treatment.
"The regulations mandate that this request be set forth on the DWC Form RFA (as found in Section 9785.5) and completed by the treating physician," the division said in Newsline 2026-4...
South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster signed a bill creating a presumption of compensability for firefighters who suffer strokes.
The governor on Friday signed H 3163, adding coverage for strokes to the law, which presumes that heart or respiratory disease that develops during or within 24 hours of fighting a fire is compensable.
Additionally, the bill covers strokes and heart or respiratory disease that develop during or within 24 hours of a training exercise involving stressful or strenuous physical activity or a technical rescue incident.
H 3163 also expressly declares that the presum...
California lawmakers advanced a bill proposing changes to the state's second injury fund ahead of a key legislative deadline, and they put a hold on a measure that would make denying a request to receive treatment during the workday a form of discrimination.
The Assembly Appropriations Committee on Thursday voted 11-4 to pass AB 1576 off its suspense file, setting up the bill for a vote by the full Assembly. The committee held AB 2098 "under submission" on the same day, meaning it did not move to the floor ahead of Friday's deadline for fiscal committees to pass bills.
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A Louisiana appellate court upheld the summary dismissal of a worker’s claim against a chemical plant operator for his injuries from an explosion and fire.
Case: Saizon v. The Dow Chemical Co., No. 2025 CA 1139, 04/24/2026, published.
Facts: Jontrell Saizon worked for Turner Industrial Group LLC. Turner contracted with The Dow Chemical Co. to bring in employees, subcontractors and equipment to assist in maintenance work at a chemical plant located in Plaquemine.
On April 25, 2020, an explosion and fire occurred at the plant, resulting in serious injuries to Saizon.
Procedural history...
West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld a claims administrator’s denial of an epidural steroid injection for a worker's lumbar spine.
Case: Bryant v. Donahue Brothers Inc., No. 25-ICA-398, 05/01/2026, published.
Facts: Deron Bryant worked for Donahue Brothers Inc. He filed a workers’ compensation claim in July 2024, asserting that he had injured his back and knee in a car accident.
A claims administrator for Donahue’s insurance carrier accepted liability for a lumbar strain and left knee contusion.
In August 2024, Bryant underwent a magnetic re...
A New York appellate court ruled that the third-party defendants in a Labor Law action were entitled to summary judgment dismissing a company's claims against them for indemnification.
Case: Mock v. New York Athletic Club of City of New York, No. 74 CA 25-00248, 04/24/2026, published.
Facts: Anthony Mock allegedly suffered injuries from a fall from a scaffold while he was working at the New York Athletic Club of City of New York.
Procedural history: Mock filed suit against NYAC, asserting claims for violations of the Labor Law.
NYAC then filed contractual indemnification claims against...
A New York appellate court upheld a grant of summary judgment for a worker on his Labor Law claim for his fall at a construction site.
Case: Gavilanes v. 919 Ground Lease LLC, No. 153246/22, 04/23/2026, published.
Facts: Luis Gavilanes allegedly suffered injuries while working at a construction site when he fell from a structure.
Gavilanes testified that he needed a mobile scaffold to perform his work, but he was directed by his foreman immediately to cross over to the other side of the structure by climbing on the cross-pipes without a harness. According to Gavilanes, the foreman had direc...
California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara approved regulatory changes recommended by the Workers' Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau for policies incepting on or after Sept. 1.
The commissioner approved all of the proposed changes to the California Workers’ Compensation Uniform Statistical Reporting Plan-1995, California Workers’ Compensation Experience Rating Plan-1995, and the Miscellaneous Regulations for the Recording and Reporting of Data-1995.
To make expected loss rates more precise, the WCIRB will use three decimal places instead of two.
The regulatory fil...
Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt signed bills to increase payroll limits for certain employers and to eliminate a joint labor-management advisory council.
The governor on Wednesday signed SB 1944 and SB 1303.
SB 1944 increases the maximum gross annual payroll limit to $250,000 from $150,000 for agriculture, ranching and horticulture businesses, effective Nov. 1. Workers for companies in these industries are not considered employees under the Workers' Compensation Act unless their employer's total payroll is equal to the statutory threshold.
SB 1904 also exempts independent contractors...
Gov. J.B. Pritzker appointed three members to the board that advises the Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission on medical fee schedules and ensuring access to treatment.
Pritzker on Friday announced that Mayra Khan, Michael Macellaio and Dr. Preston Wolin will continue to serve as members of the Workers' Compensation Medical Fee Advisory Board. The governor's statement did not say when any of the members were first appointed or how long they've served on the board.
Khan is CEO of Teamficient, a remote staffing company in Chicago.
Macellaio is secretary-treasurer of t...
