TX - Farm Animals Law Applies to Death of Ranch Hand
07/08/2026 | 0
In a case of first impression, a Texas appellate court ruled that the Liability Arising From Farm Animals Act applied to a worker’s fatal accident, even though his death was not caused directly by the actions of a farm animal.
Randal and Beverly Kinnibrugh own and raise cattle. Their son, Kyle Kinnibrugh, worked for them as a ranch hand, as did Richard Poteet.
Randal and Kyle Kinnibrugh were working together with Poteet to vaccinate cows in November 2024. To administer the vaccines, they secured each cow into a hydraulic squeeze chute.
Kyle Kinnibrugh operated levers that opened
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A federal appellate court ruled that a healthcare worker raised a viable claim of disability discrimination against her employer for denying her request for a medical exemption from receiving a COVID-19 vaccine because of a condition caused by a work-related injury.
Case: Klimek v. CentraCare Health System, No. 25-1837, 06/15/2026, published.
Facts: Christine Klimek is a registered nurse who suffered an injury while working for CentraCare Health System in 2010. Klimek then developed reflex sympathetic dystrophy.
In 2016, CentraCare instituted a policy requiring all employees to get&nb
A Louisiana appellate court ruled that a man's pursuit of a workers’ compensation claim did not allow him to avoid having his civil suit against a property owner be deemed abandoned.
Case: Goudeau v. Formosa Plastics Corp., No. 2025 CA 1330, 06/16/2026, published.
Facts and procedural history: Kenneth R. Goudeau filed suit against Formosa Plastics Corp., seeking damages for an alleged accident that occurred while he was performing welding services at Formosa's facility in Baton Rouge.
In July 2025, Formosa filed a motion for dismissal on the grounds of abandonment. Formosa ass
The West Virginia Supreme Court ruled that a worker was not entitled to additional temporary total disability benefits or to expand the scope of her claim, but she should not have been denied a cold compression therapy unit and shoulder wrap for her compensable injury.
Case: Gee v. ACNR Resources Inc., No. 25-728, 06/26/2026, published.
Facts: Katie Gee worked for ACNR Resources Inc. She went to the hospital on Jan. 26, 2024, and reported that a rock about the size of a football had fallen on her back while she was at work.
A computed tomography scan of the chest revealed a hematoma over th
The single most important thing a workers’ compensation program can do to reduce costs and improve outcomes for injured workers is also the simplest: Report claims promptly.
Prompt reporting enables prompt determination of compensability. Prompt compensability determination enables prompt provision of quality medical care. Prompt care shortens recovery. Shorter recovery reduces litigation. And litigation — not medical costs, not indemnity, not administrative expense — is the largest cost driver in the system.
Every other intervention operates downstream of that chain. T
A New York appellate court ruled that a worker should have been granted summary judgment on his Labor Law claim for his fall from a ladder.
Case: Gomez v. Brookfield Properties One WFC Co. LLC, No. 151809/24, 595462/25, 06/23/2026, published.
Facts: Jimmy Mejia Gomez fell from an 8-foot A-frame ladder while installing drywall.
According to Gomez, the ladder moved from side to side under him and caused him to fall.
Procedural history: Gomez filed suit against Brookfield Properties One WFC Co. LLC, asserting a claim for a violation of Labor Law Section 240(1).
Section 240(1) imposes absolut
TN - Comp Board Backs Delay in Walgreens Worker's Robbery-Related Claim
A Tennessee workers' compensation judge did not violate a Walgreens Co. worker’s due process rights by delaying an expedited benefits hearing after the worker said her medical problems left her unable to participate in mediation or court proceedings, an appeals board ruled Thursday.
As documented in No. 2026-80-0091, the worker was robbed at gunpoint while working for Walgreens on June 2, 2025, when an armed intruder forced her to empty an office safe. The record did not indicate she was physically assaulted. Two days later, the worker reported a mental injury, and Walgreens au
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court on Monday held that the insurance commissioner can reject rates proposed by the state's designated ratemaking agency but must explain any deviation he approves.
The commissioner nearly doubled the size of a recommended rate cut in 2024 and, in 2025, rejected a proposed increase and held rates unchanged.
Although the commissioner properly exercised his authority to disapprove the proposed rates, he failed to explain the basis for his decision to order a larger decrease than recommended, the high court said in Workers' Compensation Rating a
The Wyoming Supreme Court upheld the denial of a worker’s claim for benefits for the pancreatitis he allegedly developed as a result of the medication he took to treat a compensable injury.
Case: McDonald v. State ex rel. Department of Workforce Services, No. S-25-0228, 06/30/2026, published.
Facts: Sam McDonald suffered an injury to his head in 2014 while working as a mechanic. The Workers’ Compensation Division deemed the injury compensable.
McDonald’s injury caused him to suffer debilitating migraines, for which he sought treatment from Dr. George Zinkhan.
Zinkhan note
A divided Louisiana appellate court dismissed an appeal by an injured worker’s statutory employer challenging a determination of no coverage owed to it by its insurance carrier.
Case: Castro v. Church Mutual Insurance Co., No. 2025 CA 0964, 06/12/2026, published.
Facts: Meylin Castro worked for Southern Pro Solutions Inc. Southern had a contract to supply labor to 1 Priority Environmental Services Inc. for an asbestos abatement project at the First United Methodist Church of Denham Springs.
Sunbelt Rentals Scaffold Services Inc. provided a scaffold for the project.
While Castro was s
A New York appellate court ruled that a carpenter should have been granted summary judgment on his Labor Law claim for his fall from a ladder.
Case: Rudzikewycz v. 164 West 79th Street Corp., No. 152685/18, 06/18/2026, published.
Facts: Nick Rudzikewycz worked as a carpenter for Roth Built Works Inc. He allegedly suffered injuries in November 2016 when he fell from a ladder that shifted.
Rudzikewycz said no alternative safety device, such as a Baker scaffold, was available for his use. Although Rudzikewycz testified that he placed the ladder on the floor after ensuring that it&nbs
The West Virginia Supreme Court upheld a determination that an administrator unreasonably denied a worker’s claim for injuries from a locker falling on her.
Case: Graham Packaging Co. LP v. Barnes, No. 25-723, 06/23/2026, published.
Facts: Crystal Barnes worked for Graham Packaging Co. LP. She filed a workers’ compensation claim, alleging that she had injured her back and shoulder at work in February 2024.
Barnes went to the hospital two days after the alleged accident. She reported that a section of four lockers fell on her, pinning her to the floor while at work. The diagnosis
The Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission on Monday announced that it has suspended use of its CompFile System until further notice.
The commission said it is working to resolve technical difficulties with the electronic filing system.
"If you have a document that must be filed to fulfill a statutory filing deadline, please make certain that you retain a copy of this memo and notify the commission if there are any issues with your filing," IWCC said in a statement.
CompFile was launched in 2020 to allow electronic filing of case documents, including applications and settle
The Georgia Court of Appeals overturned the denial of a worker’s claim because the denial was premised on an erroneous legal theory.
Curtis Thomas worked for United Electric Co. He allegedly suffered injuries while completing electrical work at a newly constructed medical clinic when an air diffuser fell from the ceiling and struck him on the shoulder.
Thomas filed a workers’ compensation claim seeking authorization for medical treatment from a doctor who was not listed on the panel provided by his employer, temporary total disability benefits and attorney fees.
At the
A divided Louisiana Supreme Court ruled that the dismissal of a case due to a plaintiff’s failure to amend a petition is self-executing.
Case: LUBA Workers’ Compensation v. Sears, Nos. 2025-C-01379 and 2026-C-0057, 06/29/2026, published.
Facts and procedural history: Rebecca Sears worked for TruCare Home Health. She suffered injuries at work in 2014 and received workers’ compensation benefits from TruCare’s insurance provider, LUBA Workers’ Compensation.
In 2023, LUBA alleged that Sears fraudulently misrepresented her injuries to obtain additional benefits
