AZ - No Benefits for Man Who Accidentally Shot Himself
01/23/2026 | 0
An Arizona appeals court cited a decision that the California Supreme Court handed down during World War I in finding that a person working at an auto body repair shop was not entitled to benefits for a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Kenyatta Goins assessed the extent of damage to vehicles for Chaney's Collision Center, an auto body repair shop in Glendale.
He was working on an estimated cost to repair a pickup when he decided he needed to move the vehicle. As he was getting into the truck, the semi-automatic pistol he carried for personal protection discharged and shot him in the l...
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The Oregon Court of Appeals upheld a determination that a worker with a history of back issues did not prove the compensability of his new alleged conditions.
Case: Robey v. Weir ESCO, No. 1141, 12/31/2025, published.
Facts: Joseph Robey worked as a parts inspector for Weir ESCO in a steel foundry. He had several low-back injuries as an adult unrelated to his work for this employer, and he suffered from chronic low-back pain.
Robey’s pain worsened toward the end of 2020 after a few weeks of being busier than usual at work. His doctor diagnosed him with a lumbar strain.
Weir ESCO...
The owner of Hawkeye Waste Systems admitted to not having workers' compensation insurance in response to criminal charges stemming from a fatal accident in 2024, the Iowa City Press-Citizen reports.
Matthew Reuwsaat died of severe head trauma on Oct. 31, 2024, while working for the eastern Iowa waste management company. A subsequent investigation determined that Hawkeye Waste Systems did not have workers' compensation insurance and was not approved to be self-insured.
James Watts, the owner of the company, pleaded guilty on Jan. 16 to a felony count of failure to maintain workers'...
A New York appellate court upheld a determination that a worker waived the right to cross-examine her employer’s expert witness.
Case: Matter of Rodin v. Department of Parks and Recreation, No. CV-24-0993, 12/18/2025, published.
Facts: Daphyne Rodin worked for the Department of Parks and Recreation. She established a workers’ compensation claim for an injury to her left shoulder.
In 2022, Rodin’s treating doctor opined that she had maximum medical improvement and sustained a 7.5% schedule loss of use of the shoulder.
The department submitted a report from its own medical ...
If the past few years have taught attorneys one thing about artificial intelligence, it’s that they should not trust AI for case citations.
In December 2025, a friendly neighborhood judge asked if I had heard about the latest decision imposing sanctions for faulty citations. To be honest, I wasn’t quite sure about this most recent case, only because there were so many in recent years.
For example, the California Applicants' Attorneys Association wrote about one such case in September. And then WorkCompAcademy wrote about a similar, but different, case ...
Legislation in South Carolina would double the minimum temporary disability benefit and require annual increases, starting in 2027.
H 4820, by Rep. Tiffany Spann-Wilder, D-Charleston, would increase the minimum TD benefit to $150 per week from $75, effective July 1, 2027.
The bill would also require the Workers' Compensation Commission to increase the minimum benefit by the same percentage as the annual increase to the state's maximum average weekly wage.
The first increase to account for changes made to the average wage would have to be adopted before Oct. 1, 2027, with subsequ...
The West Virginia Supreme Court upheld a finding that a worker failed to prove that his cervical disc displacement was a compensable injury.
Case: Morgan v. Cornerstone Labor Services Inc., No. 25-604, 01/13/2026, published.
Facts: Darrell Morgan worked for Cornerstone Labor Services Inc. In June 2023, he was working as an equipment operator when his truck hit a large rock, which allegedly caused injury to his neck and back.
Morgan went to the hospital, and he was diagnosed with a cervical sprain, back pain and muscle spasms.
A claims administrator for Cornerstone’s insurance carrier...
The Delaware Superior Court remanded a dispute over the reasonableness of a worker’s surgery to the Industrial Accident Board.
Case: Smith v. Wells Fargo Bank N.A., No. N25A-04-008 SSA, 01/06/2026, published.
Facts: Kelly Smith worked for Wells Fargo Bank N.A. She suffered injuries at work in 2023.
In August 2024, Smith saw Dr. Mark Eskander, and she underwent X-rays. The images showed 12 degrees and 4 millimeters of instability on flexion and extension.
Eskander recommended cervical spine surgery, which he performed in September 2024.
Wells Fargo sought utilization review...
A California appellate court, in a published decision, ruled that a freight broker owed no duty of care to the driver of a contractor carrier who was paralyzed in a highway crash outside Oklahoma City.
The 2nd District Court of Appeal, in its Jan. 16 decision, emphasized that XPO Logistics did not supervise the contractor’s operations and reaffirmed the long-standing presumption in California's Privette doctrine that a hiring party can delegate workplace safety to an independent contractor.
Sabert Corp. hired XPO in 2020 to broker the transportation of plasticware from a ware...
Sacramento, CA [December 10, 2025] Today, POWER proudly announced its official launch as a laser-focused non-profit organized to take direct action against fraud and criminal activity in California's temporary staffing industry.
"One of the biggest crimes taking place in California's workforce is hiding in plain sight. The temporary staffing industry has become a largely unregulated playground for cri...
The Arizona Court of Appeals upheld a judge’s determination that an injured worker’s assignment of his claim was invalid.
Case: Lalliss v. National Liability and Fire Insurance Co., No. 1 CA-CV 25-0086, 12/30/2025, unpublished.
Facts and procedural history: Joshua Kosar suffered injuries while working for a construction company. He sought medical treatment and was placed on no-work status from March 26, 2018, to July 12, 2018.
Kosar then filed a workers’ compensation claim. National Liability and Fire Insurance Co. accepted liability.
National requested medical docu...
A New York appellate court upheld the denial of a worker’s claim for hearing loss due to his attorney’s improper communication with his doctor.
Case: Matter of Petti v. Asplundh Construction Corp., No. CV-24-1606, 12/18/2025, published.
Facts and procedural history: Richard Petti filed a claim for workers' compensation benefits in 2023 for binaural hearing loss resulting from exposure to loud noise during the course of his employment with Asplundh Construction Corp.
A workers’ compensation law judge held a hearing and determined that Petti’s counsel had...
The New Jersey Superior Court’s Appellate Division upheld the denial of a police officer’s application for accidental disability benefits after witnessing the death of a teenage passenger in a car wreck that ended a high-speed pursuit.
Case: Tandoc v. Board of Trustees of the Police and Firemen's Retirement System, No. A-3554-23, 01/07/2026, unpublished.
Facts: Sergio Tandoc worked as a Cinnaminson Township police officer. While on patrol in November 2017, he saw a stolen vehicle in a neighboring lane.
Tandoc attempted to initiate a traffic stop, but the vehicle sped away. T...
The West Virginia Supreme Court upheld an award of 33% permanent partial disability benefits to an injured coal miner.
Case: Murray American Energy Inc. v. Yost, No. 25-577, 01/13/2026, published.
Facts: Richard Yost worked for Murray American Energy Inc. as a coal miner. He went to the hospital in October 2019 and reported multiple injuries that occurred the day before when he was operating a man-trip that was struck by a tractor-bolt machine. The assessment was lumbar strain with right sciatica, concussion versus tension headache from whiplash, and cervical strain with radicular pain in th...
San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu announced a $4.5 million settlement with gig staffing company WorkWhile that requires the company to pay restitution to thousands of delivery drivers in California.
The City Attorney's Office sued WorkWhile for allegedly misclassifying employees as independent contractors. The staffing company, founded in 2019, provides temporary workers to businesses in various industries, including hospital and food service, event service, delivery, warehouse and general labor.
Prosecutors said the company misclassified workers as contractors, depriving them of ov...
The Texas Division of Workers' Compensation adopted rules to implement legislation providing certain benefits for death investigators.
Rules taking effect Jan. 29 specify that carriers must expedite and prioritize claims for medical benefits by death investigators who suffer a serious bodily injury in the course and scope of employment, the division said. They also specify that the DWC will fast-track an appeal of a denied claim.
The division said the rules are intended to implement HB 1306.
The bill entitles death investigators to reimbursement for medical expenses resulting from ...
A Hawaii lawmaker wants to prohibit the prescribing of certain drugs to injured workers, saying the lack of clear provisions governing reimbursement rates has resulted in inflated charges.
HB 1648, by Rep. Scot Z. Matayoshi, would prohibit providers from prescribing or dispensing a nonprescription drug, over-the-counter drug or nonlegend drug.
The bill would define those medications by referencing another statute that defines them as any packaged, bottled or non-bulk chemical, drug or medicine that can be legally sold without a prescription.
The bill includes a statement of legisl...
