NY - High Court Says Collateral Estoppel Law Applies to Nonfinal Actions
05/26/2026 | 0
New York's top court held that a 2022 law barring virtually all workers' compensation decisions from binding future litigation applies to all pending and nonfinal actions.
The Justice for Injured Workers Act provides that no finding by the Workers' Compensation Board or a workers’ compensation law judge shall be given collateral estoppel effect in any other action or proceeding arising out of the same occurrence, other than a determination of the existence of an employer-employee relationship.
The Appellate Division's 1st Department in January 2025 said the statute appl
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The California Supreme Court on June 2 will hear oral arguments regarding the Workers' Compensation Appeals Board's request to review an appellate court decision prohibiting the board from acting on petitions for reconsideration more than 60 days after they were filed.
The high court in Mayor v. WCAB (Ross Valley Sanitation District) will address not only the WCAB's strict deadline, but also whether a party's own 45-day deadline to appeal to a higher court can be extended when the board stalls.
According to the docket, parties should be prepared to address:
Whether due pro
The California Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board granted a petition by the Western Occupational and Environmental Medicine Association to begin the process of prohibiting the fabrication and installation of artificial stone products containing more than 1% crystalline silica.
The board unanimously asked the Division of Occupational Safety and Health to prepare a finding of emergency to support emergency rulemaking. The board also directed the agency, more commonly known as Cal/OSHA, to convene advisory committees to evaluate the feasibility and implications of potential
The Workers Compensation Research Institute is holding a webinar on June 11 that will focus on the design of fee schedule regulations and how they affect medical prices and payments across state workers’ compensation systems.
“Attendees will learn the key decisions states face when designing and updating fee schedules, as well as how different approaches shape prices for professional and hospital services,” said Ramona Tanabe, president and CEO of WCRI.
Rebecca Yang, a senior public policy analyst at WCRI, will present findings from several recent WCRI studies, includin
The owner of a waste disposal company in Iowa was fined $1,025 and placed on probation for three years for operating without workers' compensation insurance, according to media reports.
James Watts, 83, also received a three-year deferred prison sentence. If he completes the terms of probation, which include making a minimum $50 monthly payment to satisfy the civil fine, the felony conviction will be expunged from his record.
District Associate Court Judge Jason Burns on Thursday also placed Watts' company, Hawkeye Waste Systems, on probation for three years and imposed a suspended f
Beacon Mutual Insurance Co. posted a notice to its website about a data hack in January that exposed information of more than 131,000 people living in Rhode Island.
Beacon announced that it discovered unauthorized activity on its computer network, and an investigation determined that someone accessed the system and acquired copies of certain files between Jan. 7 and Jan. 14.
A subsequent investigation determined that one or more of the files contained information including first and last names, Social Security or driver's license numbers, financial account numbers, health insurance infor
LA - Court Upholds Shoulder Treatment in Comp Dispute Over Preexisting Condition
A now-deceased delivery driver’s shoulder replacement was compensable, a Louisiana appeals court ruled Wednesday, finding evidence supported the claim that a work-related vehicle accident aggravated his preexisting shoulder condition.
The Louisiana Court of Appeal, 2nd Circuit, affirmed a ruling in Stevie Michael Holmes v. Replacement Parts Inc. and Zurich American Insurance Co., holding that Replacement Parts and Zurich must pay for reasonable and necessary medical treatment for Holmes’ entire injury.
Holmes, who worked for Bumper to Bumper, also known as Replacement Parts,
Dermatological agents accounted for the largest share of workers' compensation prescription payments in early 2025, with much of the spending concentrated in delivery pharmacies and physician dispensing channels, according to a report released Thursday by the Workers Compensation Research Institute.
The Waltham, Massachusetts-based institute said physician dispensing and delivery pharmacies accounted for more than 70% of dermatological prescription payments in 20 of 31 study states during the first quarter of 2025. In states with the highest dermatological payment shares, those channels a
Pennsylvania lawmakers introduced legislation that would require utilities and certain electrical contractors to provide automated external defibrillators at worksites where lineworkers perform utility or electrical work.
SB 1328, introduced Wednesday and referred to the Senate Labor and Industry Committee, would require at least one operable AED at each utility or electrical worksite, including temporary, mobile and field locations. For crews working on poles, underground facilities or storm restoration, the AED would have to be located on a vehicle, trailer or other mobile unit at or in rea
The number of eligible applications for independent medical review increased to 152,832 in 2025 from 148,106 in 2024 while the proportion of decisions affirming the underlying utilization review determination rebounded last year, according to a new report by the California Division of Workers’ Compensation.
Overall, the DWC reports that 152,243 independent medical review final determination letters were issued in 2025, up from 141,621 in 2024.
Those IMR decisions upheld 87.3% of UR decisions in 2024, the lowest uphold rate since the launch of the program created through the SB 863 refo
Workplace homicides remain relatively rare but persistent, with most occurring in public-facing jobs, cash-handling environments, transportation, food service and protective services, according to a report by the National Council on Compensation Insurance.
NCCI said workplace homicides accounted for 400 to 500 deaths annually across all ownership categories and 350 to 400 deaths annually in private industry from 2011 through 2024. They represented about 8.5% to 9.5% of all workplace fatalities during most of that period, with no sustained increase or decrease despite year-to-year volatility.
A New Hampshire contractor was not immune from a negligence lawsuit filed by a Massachusetts temporary worker who was injured at a Maine job site, the Maine Supreme Judicial Court ruled Tuesday.
In Roberto Valmont-Olivier v. Envirovantage Inc., the high court affirmed a Cumberland County Superior Court order denying Envirovantage’s motion for summary judgment based on workers compensation exclusivity.
Valmont-Olivier, a Massachusetts resident, was hired in 2020 by Enviro Staffing, a Florida staffing firm authorized to do business in Massachusetts, and assigned to work for Envirovantage
California lawmakers are again moving to restrict the ability of professional athletes to file cumulative trauma claims in the state.
And just as the previous effort to clamp down on professional athlete claims was contemporaneous with the SB 863 reforms — when the system was dealing with costs associated with, among other things, cumulative trauma claims and allocated loss adjustment expenses — the latest effort arrives as the Workers' Compensation Insurance Rating Bureau reports that both metrics have reached all-time highs.
The WCIRB cited cumulative trauma claim fre
The Iowa Supreme Court on Friday revived part of a truck driver’s workers' compensation challenge, ruling that the state workers' compensation commissioner misapplied the American Medical Association impairment guides when reducing the worker’s permanent disability rating.
In Kevin Koeller v. Cardinal Logistics Management Corp. and Ace American Insurance Co., the high court affirmed in part and vacated in part a Court of Appeals ruling and remanded the case for further proceedings.
Kevin Koeller worked as a semitruck driver for Cardinal Logistics and was injured Oct. 5, 2
The Tennessee Court of Appeals ruled that exclusivity shielded a company that used a staffing service provider from a civil suit by an injured employee.
Case: King v. Dayco Inc., No. W2025-00262-COA-R3-CV, 04/29/2026, published.
Facts: Pro-Man Staffing Solutions LLC contracted with Dayco Inc. to provide workers.
Keith King was employed by Pro-Man and assigned to work for Dayco.
King allegedly suffered injuries while working at Dayco’s property in June 2023 when he drove a forklift over plywood, and the vehicle fell through.
Procedural history: King filed a civil suit again
