UT - High Court: Board Erred in Terminating Worker's Claim for Obstructing IME
07/20/2026 | 0
The Utah Supreme Court said the Labor Commission Appeals Board lacked the discretion to dismiss an injured worker's claim after finding a pattern of antagonistic and obstructive behavior over three failed independent medical examinations.
Though the board characterized the behavior as a discovery violation to find the authority to dismiss the claim entirely, the high court said the Legislature specified that the penalty for obstructing an IME is to suspend the claim until the claimant comes into compliance.
"It follows that the only sanction available for obstruction of a medical ex
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The Illinois Appellate Court ruled that if an employer receives the full amount of a worker’s third-party settlement via subrogation, it is properly assessed with the full amount of the worker’s costs and expenses.
Case: Larsen v. Vaid, No. 1-25-2100, 07/14/2026, published.
Facts and procedural history: Amada Larsen suffered injuries in an automobile accident with Vishal Vaid.
Larsen was acting within the course and scope of her employment as an officer with the Village of Carol Stream Police Department at the time of the crash.
The Intergovernmental Risk Management Agency
A New York appellate court ruled that a worker struck by a falling object was entitled to summary judgment on his Labor Law claim.
Case: Gutierrez v. 80 Winthrop Street Owners Corp., No. 23823/16, 07/02/2026, published.
Facts: Armando Gutierrez was injured when a piece of terra cotta coping, which was secured to a parapet wall and anchored a suspended scaffold by C-hooks, dislodged and struck him while he was working below on the suspended scaffold.
According to the president of 80 Winthrop Street Owners Corp., a third party had replaced the piece of terra cotta coping before the accident,
The New York Department of Financial Services approved a workers' compensation filing that state officials said will reduce employer premiums by an average of 22%, beginning in October.
The New York Compensation Insurance Rating Board recommended a 21.9% decrease in the overall loss cost level for policies with effective dates on or after Oct. 1.
The department approved the filing on Wednesday, Gov. Kathy Hochul said in a statement.
Hochul said the loss cost reduction will save employers an estimated $1 billion in premiums, or an average of $1,779 per policyholder.
The governor's o
When determining whether a psychiatric impairment may be compensable, it’s important to understand the “violent act” exception.
In a previous article, “If Everything Is Catastrophic, Is Anything?", we explored the “catastrophic injury” exception under Labor Code § 4660.1(c)(2)(B). This article examines the other exception: the “violent act.”
Labor Code § 4660.1(c) provides:
(c)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), there shall be no increase in impairment ratings for sleep dysfunction, sexual dysfunction or psychiatr
The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania upheld the denial of a worker’s claim for benefits from a fall based on her lack of credibility and an expert medical opinion that she had not suffered a work-related injury.
Case: Niculcea v. Susquehanna Valley Nursing and Rehabilitation Center (WCAB), No. 1645 C.D. 2024, 07/10/2026, published.
Facts and procedural history: Monica Niculcea worked for the Susquehanna Valley Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. She fell at work in November 2017.
Susquehanna Valley paid benefits under several notices of temporary compensation until February 2018
A New York appellate court overturned a grant of summary judgment for a worker struck by a falling object.
Case: Rolka v. Neelam Construction Corp., No. 2024-08597, 07/08/2026, published.
Facts: Marcin Rolka allegedly sustained injuries while working for Ladi Construction, a subcontractor hired by Neelam Construction Corp. to perform waterproofing, demolition and debris removal work at Long Island City High School in Queens.
Rolka claimed that as he was bent over and picking up debris from a scaffold beneath another scaffold that other demolition workers were standing on, an object str
A surge in cumulative trauma claims is reshaping California workers' compensation trends, contributing to higher claim frequency, rising frictional costs and renewed pressure on insurer results, according to WCIRB Executive Vice President and Chief Actuary Tony Milano.
Milano said Thursday during the WCIRB's annual conference that written premium, which came in around $15.6 billion for 2025, has been uncharacteristically stable over the past four years, with modest growth in employee payroll largely offsetting the effect of modest decreases in average charged rates.
"I would
A California appellate court ruled that an insurance carrier validly cancelled an employer’s policy for failing to comply with a payroll audit before its employee was injured.
Case: Employers Preferred Insurance Co. v. WCAB (Purchase Green Artificial Grass), No. C104263, 07/14/26, unpublished.
Facts: Employers Preferred Insurance Co. provided a workers’ compensation policy to Purchase Green Artificial Grass in 2020. The policy was set to expire in May 2021.
In March 2021, Employers issued a renewal policy to Purchase.
This policy stated that the premium listed was “an est
A New York appellate court upheld a grant of summary judgment on a Labor Law claim by a worker struck by a falling piece of machinery.
Case: Cespedes v. El-Kam Lexington Avenue LLC, No. 300851/17, 06/30/2026, published.
Facts: Enmanuel Cespedes suffered injuries while working on a property owned by El-Kam Lexington Avenue LLC.
Cespedes and his co-workers were in the process of lowering by hand a heavy, cumbersome piece of machinery called a switchgear into an elevator when the top part of the switchgear fell on him, cracked and knocked off his hard hat, and caused him to fall backwards.
Pr
A Louisiana appellate court ruled that a worker’s untruthful response on a pre-employment medical questionnaire forfeited his entitlement to benefits for a back injury.
Case: Stewart v. Cajun Industries LLC, No. 2025 CA 0502, 07/02/2026, published.
Facts: In 2018, Tyler Stewart was involved in a motor vehicle accident. He sought treatment from Dr. Kevin McCarthy for back pain.
McCarthy ordered a magnetic resonance imaging scan, which indicated that Stewart had facet effusions, disc bulges and disc herniations.
McCarthy performed a facet joint injection on Stewart and then releas
West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld a determination that a longtime coal worker did not have occupational pneumoconiosis.
Case: Cook v. Arch Coal, No. 26-ICA-42, 06/30/2026, published.
Facts and procedural history: Wesley Cook spent more than 39 years working as an underground coal miner and electrician.
He underwent pulmonary function studies in December 2021. Dr. J. Randolph Forehand interpreted the studies as showing no impairment.
Cook also underwent a chest radiograph, and Forehand opined that it was negative for occupational pneumoconiosis.
In January 202
Today marks the 10th anniversary of the loss of WorkCompCentral founder, president and chief executive officer David DePaolo.
DePaolo died on July 17, 2016, in a Ventura County, California, motorcycle accident. He was 56.
DePaolo, who practiced as a workers' compensation defense attorney for Miller & Folse, Adelson Testan Brundo & Popalardo, and as a sole practitioner, believed the industry needed an authoritative source of knowledge, information and expertise for its professionals.
To that end, he founded WorkCompCentral.com in 1999, a web publication that continu
NATL. - Workers' Comp Renewals Stay Competitive as Severity Pressures Build
Midyear workers' compensation renewals remained favorable for employers nationally, but an increase in California advisory pure premium rates is raising concerns that claim severity and medical costs could eventually erode soft market conditions.
Insurers continue to compete aggressively for profitable workers' comp business and are using the line to secure or retain broader casualty and umbrella relationships, brokers say.
“Many insurers continue to view workers' comp as their most profitable casualty line and are willing to use it strategically to retain or win broader re
California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the bill implementing his administration's Subsequent Injuries Benefits Trust Fund reforms.
Newsom on Monday signed SB 171, a budget trailer bill that includes provisions to tighten eligibility criteria for SIBTF claims and permanently adopt a statute giving the Workers' Compensation Appeals Board 60 days from the date it receives a case file to act on a petition for reconsideration.
The administration has argued that the reforms are necessary because the Department of Industrial Relations estimates that total liabilities for the program and th
The Mississippi Court of Appeals ruled that a worker with a long history of shoulder issues did not have reason to know she had a work-related shoulder injury more than two years before she filed her claim.
Case: Thompson v. Boyd Biloxi LLC, No. 2025-WC-01288-COA, 06/30/2026, published.
Facts: Sandra Thompson began working for Boyd Biloxi LLC in 2012 as a dealer and a supervisor. As a dealer, Thompson was required to lift her arms above her head, to the side, and extend them back and forth.
Thompson saw Dr. Stephen Schepens in April 2021 for pain in her right shoulder.
In July 2021, T
