CA - 6th DCA: No Equitable Tolling Without Record Showing Attempt to Meet Deadline
01/15/2026 | 0
California's 6th District Court of Appeal on Wednesday said the Workers' Compensation Appeals Board acted outside its jurisdiction by granting an injured worker's petition for reconsideration nearly two years after it was filed.
The WCAB did not attempt to explain the 22-month delay between receiving the case file and issuing its order after reconsideration, and there was no evidence of special circumstances to justify equitable tolling of the limitations period. Even assuming satisfaction of the first two elements — timely notice and lack of prejudice — the court...
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An Ohio appellate court denied an employer’s challenge to a finding that a worker was entitled to additional temporary total disability benefits after undergoing surgery due to an allowed condition in his claim.
Case: State ex rel. Forward Air Corp. v. Industrial Commission, No. 24AP-223, 12/23/2025, published.
Facts and procedural history: D.W. Kincer worked for the Forward Air Corp., a self-insured employer. He suffered injuries to his left leg and foot in 2018. Kincer received treatment, including a spinal cord stimulator.
In 2020, a staff hearing officer determined that Kincer&rsq...
The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania upheld a determination that a worker’s former attorney had been adequately compensated for his services and that the worker was entitled to replace him.
Case: Puricelli v. Kolbas, No. 1440 C.D. 2023, 12/23/2025, published.
Facts and procedural history: Georgia Kolbas worked for the City of Philadelphia. She suffered a tick bite while working in May 2014 and developed Lyme disease.
Kolbas hired attorney Brian Puricelli to pursue a workers’ compensation claim, and in March 2016, a workers’ compensation judge approved of his receiving a ...
A New York appellate court ruled that a worker should have been granted summary judgment on his Labor Law claim for his injuries from a fall from a scaffold.
Case: Pacheco v. 32-42 55th Street Realty, No. 2021-08218, 12/17/2025, published.
Facts: Galo Pacheco allegedly sustained injuries in 2014 when he fell from scaffolding while performing work on a construction site.
The site was owned by 32-42 55th Street Realty LLC, which had hired Crescent Street Construction Corp. to serve as the general contractor.
Crescent hired B Green Construction Corp. to install a brick facade on the front of ...
As a workers’ compensation defense attorney, one of the things that fascinates me the most is how things can get done with the help of the proverbial enemy of defendants: the applicants' attorney.
Though we are legal rivals by nature of the case, we eventually bring each of our clients to that common fence of settlement, whether it’s a simple agreement to go off-calendar or a culminating settlement of a case.
At the end of the day, most applicants' and defense attorneys share the common interest of getting things done and moving cases forward. Even most judg...
West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld a determination that a worker who fell 15 feet from a forklift had no permanent partial disability from his extensive injuries.
Case: Carter v. Seven Rivers Design Build LLC, No. 25-ICA-209, 12/22/2025, published.
Facts: Brandon Carter worked for Seven Rivers Design Build LLC. He fell 15 feet from a forklift in November 2022, suffering multiple injuries, including multiple facial fractures, a skull fracture, a liver laceration and a splenic laceration.
Dr. Cole Sloboda examined Carter in December 2022. Sloboda diagnosed a facia...
The New Mexico Workers' Compensation Administration is proposing rules that would require attorneys to analyze a dozen different issues when seeking fees in excess of the statutory cap.
The WCA is also proposing to eliminate a requirement that injured workers and their attorneys be allowed to participate in contacts with its case management contractor.
Attorney fees are generally capped by statute at $22,500. Attorneys requesting larger awards would be required to discuss "the chilling effect of miserly fees upon the ability of an injured worker to obtain adequate representation,&qu...
Legislation introduced at the request of the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries would allow the agency to use electronic notice for communications currently required to be sent through the mail and relax notice requirements for rulemaking hearings.
HB 2406 and identical companion measure SB 6039 would eliminate the prohibition on sending electronic orders of claim closures and amend numerous other statutes regarding notices that the department currently refers to as "mailing."
The bills would allow L&I to send electronic notices if the agency has provided...
MS - Bill Would Bar Comp if Safety Rule Violated
A Mississippi bill would allow employers to deny workers' compensation benefits when an injury stems from an intentional breach of a safety rule.
HB 635, introduced Tuesday, would amend state workers' compensation law to create a specific exception to the requirement that compensation be paid for disability or death from a workplace injury.
Under the proposal, no benefits would be payable if the employee’s injury was “proximately” caused by a “willful violation” of a reasonable safety rule or regulation that was written, communicated to the worker and di...
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...
New Jersey lawmakers are again considering a bill that would block many undocumented immigrants from receiving workers' compensation and temporary disability benefits.
Lawmakers are also set to take up a measure that would bar workers' compensation benefits for employees who are intoxicated when they’re injured.
SB 1521, introduced Tuesday and sent to the Senate Labor Committee, states that certain noncitizens who are in the U.S. without lawful status would be ineligible for wage-replacement benefits typically available under state workers' compensation law and to employees...
California Gov. Gavin Newsom released a preliminary budget that would nearly triple staffing for the Subsequent Injuries Benefits Trust Fund and once again called for comprehensive reform of the embattled program.
Meanwhile, Assemblymember Liz Ortega, D-San Leandro, on Monday reintroduced a bill that would revise eligibility criteria for SIBTF claims and that is virtually identical to a measure Newsom vetoed in October.
The governor, in vetoing last year's measure, said he called on the Department of Industrial Relations and the Division of Workers' Compensation to develop a comprehe...
The Tennessee Court of Appeals upheld the dismissal of an injured worker’s malpractice claim against his former attorneys.
Case: Mamadou v. Gatti, Keltner, Bienvenu & Montesi PC, No. W2024-01262-COA-R3-CV, 12/22/2025, unpublished.
Facts and procedural history: Abdoulaye Mamadou hired the law firm Gatti, Keltner, Bienvenu & Montesi PC to pursue a workers’ compensation claim against his employer, Harrah’s Casino, which is in Mississippi.
After a trial, an administrative judge issued Mamadou wage-loss benefits totaling $101,501.05.
Harrah’s appealed, ...
West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld a determination that a worker suffered a compensable injury from a fall at work.
Case: Little Dogs Daycare v. Carroll, No. 25-ICA-287, 12/22/2025, published.
Facts: Scarlett Carroll worked for Little Dogs Daycare. She filed a workers’ compensation claim, asserting that she had injured her left foot and ankle when she fell at work in August 2024.
An administrator for Little Dogs’ insurance carrier denied the claim on the basis that Carroll’s fall happened while she was on her way to a lunch break outside the employe...
The Nevada Court of Appeals upheld a denial of benefits to a security guard for his injuries from a car crash he caused by falling asleep behind the wheel.
Case: Bright v. ADT Security Services Inc., No. 89262-COA, 12/18/2025, unpublished.
Facts: Dwayne Bright worked for ADT Security Services Inc. as an armed patrol officer. While responding to a call, he fell asleep while driving and hit the car in front of him with enough force that his airbags deployed.
Bright went to the hospital and received treatment for his injuries.
Procedural history: Bright filed a workers’ compensatio...
A New York appellate court partially revived a worker’s Labor Law claim over being struck by a falling object.
Case: Guacho v. DLV Empire LLC, No. 2021-01457, 12/17/2025, published.
Facts: DLV Empire LLC contracted with Kader Elite Construction Inc. for the construction of a new home on DLV's property.
Aaron S. Construction Corp. was hired to install elevators in the home.
Manuel Jesus Tene Guacho worked for ASCC. He allegedly was allegedly working on the elevator installation when a box containing an elevator door fell and pinned his leg, fracturing it.
Procedural history:...
The California Division of Workers' Compensation announced that it is accepting applications for the next qualified medical evaluator examination, being held April 11-17.
The DWC said it will offer in-person, computer-based testing using Pearson VUE. The division also said CPS HR Consulting, the vendor managing the exam, will send notices to interested candidates advising them of the registration and scheduling process. The registration notices will also provide information about test sites.
The deadline for filing exam applications is Feb. 25.
For more information, contact the DWC&rsqu...
