CA - Appeals Court Resurrects FEHA Claim From SLAPP Ruling
04/28/2025 | 0
A California appellate court resurrected a former Los Angeles police officer’s Fair Employment and Housing Act claim, finding that the trial court went too far in granting the city’s anti-SLAPP motion and in dismissing claims arising from both protected and unprotected activities.
James Cairns sued Los Angeles for alleged violations of the Fair Employment and Housing Act arising from an investigation into his workers’ compensation claim. The work comp investigation spurred a secondary investigation into his on-duty judgment that led the department to initiate proceeding...
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The Supreme Court of Maryland held that an attorney representing an injured worker is entitled to a percentage of the amount awarded by the Workers’ Compensation Commission after application of a statutory offset for his service-connected disability retirement benefits.
Case: Zukowski v. Anne Arundel County, No. 14, 04/24/2025, published.
Facts: Mark Zukowski and Joshua Ruggiero worked for the Anne Arundel County Police Department, and both suffered injuries in the line of duty. They received workers’ compensation benefits and accidental disability retirement benefits.
Under Mar...
The Alaska Supreme Court upheld the denial of a restaurant server’s discovery and evidentiary motions, as well as her claim for benefits.
Case: Fletcher v. Pike's on the River Inc., No. S-18861, 04/23/2025, unpublished.
Facts: Jennifer Fletcher worked as a server at Pike’s Landing. While at work in July 2014, Fletcher slipped and fell two steps onto a concrete floor.
Pike’s filed a report of injury with the Alaska Workers’ Compensation Board and paid Fletcher a small amount of temporary disability.
Pike’s stopped disability payments on Aug. 9, 2014, after ...
A New York appellate court ruled that a worker was not entitled to summary judgment on his Labor Law claim because of differing versions of the alleged accident presented by him and a witness.
Case: Villalta v. Tonka Realty on 5th LLC, No. 2024-01856, 04/16/2025, published.
Facts: Jose Villalta allegedly suffered injuries while working on a demolition project at a property owned by Tonka Realty on 5th LLC.
According to Villalta, he had been instructed to use a rubber-footed metal ladder on plywood flooring to go from the first floor to the second floor of the worksite. As he ...
Across the U.S., lawmakers are reconsidering their approach to mental health coverage under their workers’ compensation systems, particularly for first responders.
Bills in the Connecticut, Wisconsin, Montana, Kentucky and Oklahoma legislatures aim to expand workers’ ability to file work-related mental health claims, and providers should be ready.
If these state measures pass, they will likely drive more injured workers into treatment, increasing the demand for providers who are eligible to deliver mental health services to injured...
The West Virginia Supreme Court upheld the denial of benefits to a worker’s widow, finding that his death was not related to his occupational pneumoconiosis.
Case: Mullins v. Maple Meadow Mining Co., No. 24-479, 04/22/2025, published.
Facts: Everette D. Mullins worked for Maple Meadow Mining Co. Throughout his life, he suffered from a host of medical issues, including an acute inferior wall myocardial infarction, arteriosclerotic cardiovascular disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, coronary artery disease, unstable angina pectoris, hypertension, obesity, hyperlipidemia a...
A woman who pleaded no contest to insurance fraud and tax evasion will serve time behind bars and pay more than $1.4 million in restitution, according to the Sacramento County District Attorney's Office.
Martha Toro, owner of MT Janitorial Services, will serve 270 days in county jail and two years of formal probation, plus restitution and fines of $1,454,130.
A state audit determined that between 2013 and 2020, Toro underreported her payroll and lowered her workers' compensation insurance premiums through the scheme, resulting in Markel Insurance, her compan...
Texas Mutual Insurance Co. announced plans to distribute $8 million in grant funding to nonprofits this year.
The carrier said the first grant cycle will focus on “initiatives that support generational impact” and will be awarded to organizations that focus on improving the health and wellness of Texas workers by providing access to health care; providing resources for the early childhood education system; and providing support and case management services “to ensure families have the resources they need to seize opportunities.”
The second grant cycle will bolster wor...
The Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation announced that the open enrollment period for employers to select managed care organizations to oversee treatment for injured workers starts today and continues through May 23.
Every two years, the BWC allows employers to select from a network of MCOs that manage claim filings and medical care. Employers satisfied with their current organization are not required to take any action, but companies considering a change can find details in the bureau’s MCO selection guide, here.
The bureau said its MCO report card provides summaries on ea...
With profound sadness, the Law Offices of David J. Shepard announces the death of David J. Shepard after a very short-term illness at the age of 74. He was the sole practitioner of a workers’ compensation practice that was founded in 1986.
Shepard was admitted to the California State Bar in 1978 after getting his juris doctorate from the University of Sa...
Montana lawmakers on Friday voted to send the governor a bill that would allow police, firefighters and emergency medical care providers to file workers’ compensation claims for stress.
The state House of Representatives on Friday voted 58-42 to pass Senate Bill 394, by Sen. Cora Neumann, D-Bozeman. The bill has not been amended since the Senate voted 29-20 to pass it April 4.
SB 394 would create an exception to the state’s prohibition on work comp coverage for stress claims and allow benefits for first responders diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder.
The bill would req...
The Hawaii Supreme Court held that a landlord failed to rebut the presumption that a tenant who performed maintenance work under a lease agreement was an employee who could pursue a comp claim for injuries sustained after falling from a roof.
Brenda Weeks owns 5.5 acres of rental property, including 1 acre with a main house, an apartment, a two-story cabin and a couple of renovated shacks. From 2013 through 2015, James Borrson and his wife rented one of the units.
Rental agreements they signed in 2013 and 2014 provided that rent would be offset by in-kind work. The agreement signed in 2...
An Ohio appellate court issued a limited writ of mandamus directing the Industrial Commission to determine whether the adult son of a fallen police officer was actually dependent on his father and entitled to death benefits.
Case: State ex rel. Mazany v. City of Mentor, No. 22AP-15, 04/17/2025, published.
Facts: Mathew Mazany worked as a police officer for the City of Mentor. He was killed in the line of duty in June 2018.
At the time of his death, he had a 20-year-old son with his ex-wife.
Procedural history: Mazany’s son filed a claim for death benefits, asserting that he was still...
A New York appellate court revived multiple claims arising out of a worker’s alleged injuries at a construction site, finding that summary judgment was inappropriate because triable issues of fact remain.
Case: Cianciulli v. Urban Foundation/Engineering LLC, No. 2020-09139, 04/16/2025, published.
Facts: In May 2014, Gramercy Group Inc. entered into a subcontract with 22 Bond GC LLC to provide demolition and abatement services on a construction project. Urban Foundation/Engineering LLC also entered into a subcontract with Bond to provide excavation and foundation services.
T...
The West Virginia Supreme Court upheld an award of benefits based on a 21% permanent partial disability for a worker’s back injury.
Case: Blackhawk Mining Inc. v. Caldwell, No. 24-497, 04/22/2025, published.
Facts: Archie Caldwell worked for Blackhawk Mining Inc. He injured his back at work in August 2020.
Before this incident, Caldwell had twice injured his back as a result of on-the-job falls, but he received no permanent partial disability awards as a result of these accidents.
In April 2019, Caldwell underwent an X-ray of his lumbar spine, revealing very mild anterolisthesis of L...
A Northern California man who staged a robbery of an Amazon delivery truck he was driving for work, then filed a workers’ compensation claim, was convicted of fraud, the San Joaquin County District Attorney’s Office announced.
Stacy Johnson pleaded guilty to grand theft and insurance fraud and was sentenced to four months in county jail, according to the DA’s office. Johnson will also serve two years on felony probation and be required to pay $3,000 in restitution for costs of the investigation and $2,000 to Amazon for what prosecutors described as “stolen goods.&rdquo...
Four people, including two applicants’ attorneys, are facing fraud charges for allegedly participating in a capping scheme that used a Mexican call center to target Spanish-speaking workers, according to the California Department of Insurance.
Attorneys Antony Gluck, 55, and Michael De La Garza, 41, were arrested Wednesday by Insurance Department detectives. Both were released on $500,000 bail.
Arley Franco, 42, was arrested earlier in April while attempting to enter the country, according to the department.
The department said that from January 2022 to September 2023, Franco sold 320...
