FL - Court: Employer Didn't Rebut Heart-Lung Presumption
02/20/2026 | 0
A judge of compensation claims erred in finding that an employer rebutted a presumptive claim because the Citrus County Sheriff's Office and Florida Sheriff's Risk Management Fund failed to carry their burden of establishing that the causes of a sergeant's heart condition were exclusively nonoccupational, an appellate court ruled.
The 1st District Court of Appeal said the standard for rebutting the so-called "heart-lung" presumption is demanding and requires showing that the disabling impairment was caused entirely by nonwork factors.
"Evidence showing that nonoccu...
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The Nevada Court of Appeals upheld the denial of relief to an employer that failed to oppose a worker’s petition challenging the suspension of her benefits.
Case: Nye County v. Amland, No. 87952-COA, 02/02/2026, unpublished.
Facts and procedural history: Wendy Amland worked for Nye County as an evidence technician.
Amland filed a workers’ compensation claim in 2014 after having an adverse respiratory reaction on two occasions after being exposed to bags of confiscated marijuana.
The county denied Amland’s claim, but an appeals officer ruled that it was compensable. A...
A New York appellate court rejected a property owner’s “integral-to-the-work” defense to a worker’s Labor Law claim.
Case: Padilla v. 76 Eleventh Avenue Property Owner LLC, No. 32816/19, 02/03/2026, published.
Facts: Arcadio Pena Padilla suffered injuries while working on a construction project at a property owned by 76 Eleventh Avenue Property Owner LLC when he tripped on metal debris at the foot of the ladder on which he was working.
Procedural history: Padilla filed suit against the property owner, asserting a claim for a violation of Labor Law Section 241(6).
Se...
An Ohio appellate court upheld an award of permanent total disability benefits to a truck driver, finding that the combined effect of his injuries, advanced age, limited education, job history and restrictions left him unemployable.
Case: State ex rel. OneSource Employee Management LLC v. Industrial Commission, No. 24AP-615, 02/05/2026, published.
Facts: Charles L. Storts fell and hit his head in November 2017 while working as a truck driver for BEX Logistics Inc.
Storts filed a workers’ compensation claim in 2018. The claim was allowed for a scalp abrasion and a closed head...
Who hasn’t experienced working so hard to get the case settled, only to have it held up by applicants' attorneys raising the issue of “unpaid” Labor Code Section 5710 fees?
Do you ever tire of receiving that standard bill from that one law firm demanding over $3,000 for taking a deposition that wasn’t out of the ordinary?
Take heart, my weary friends on the defendants' side of the aisle, as the Division of Workers' Compensation has now proposed a pathway to eliminate these frustrations in large part from our practice. Yet, there is still more...
West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals vacated an award of permanent partial disability benefits to a miner because of deficiencies in the Board of Review's analysis.
Case: Bolen v. Brooks Run South Mining LLC, No. 25-ICA-236, 02/03/2026, published.
Facts: John Bolen worked as an underground coal miner for more than 40 years.
In July 2014, the Occupational Pneumoconiosis Board determined that Bolen had a 10% impairment due to occupational pneumoconiosis.
A claims administrator for Brooks Run South Mining LLC's insurance carrier issued Bolen a 10% pe...
AL - Employer Cited After Sewer Worker Deaths
“Numerous safety hazards” were found at an Alabama site where workers were fatally exposed to sewage gases, the U.S. Labor Department said.
Investigators with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration found that on Aug. 11, 2025, three workers for Construction Labor Services were installing and repairing sewer lines inside a manhole in Mobile when they were "overcome by sewer gas and became unresponsive,” the Labor Department said in a release.
Garrett Robertson, 31, and Herbert Rivas, 50, died.
Investigators determined that the company did not have programs, ...
The U.S. Labor Department has cited and proposed penalties for United States Steel Corp. and contractor MPW Industrial Services after an August 2025 explosion at the steel giant’s Clairton Coke Works in Pennsylvania killed two and injured 12 workers.
The blast claimed the life of 39-year-old Timothy Quinn, while the family of the second victim requested that his name not be released publicly, according to a USA Today report.
The department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration said its investigation found that both employers exposed workers to “explosion, struck-b...
Workers' compensation is the exclusive remedy for workers suing San Diego and a city official for injuries they allegedly suffered after being exposed to asbestos, a California appellate court held.
The 4th District Court of Appeal, in an unpublished decision handed down Tuesday, rejected the argument that the lawsuit fits an exception to exclusivity for cases where the employer concealed the existence of injuries and the connection to employment.
A group of San Diego employees sued the city, alleging that it intentionally exposed them to asbestos and concealed the extent of the ...
Multi-Year sponsorship Expands Across Texas and California with Educational Resources, Community Leadership, and Patient Support
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. / AUSTIN, Texas - Centre for Neuro Skills (CNS) and the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association have extended their strategic relationship through 2027. CNS support of the Association launched in 2023 to forge stronger connections with...
The Michigan Court of Appeals ruled that as long as a workers’ compensation insurance carrier has a good-faith ground for disputing coverage for a medical provider’s services, and the provider is paid by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the provider does not have a viable private cause of action against the carrier for double damages under the Medicare Secondary Payer Act.
Case: Bronson Healthcare Group Inc. v. Conifer Insurance Co., No. 368812 and 368816, 02/02/2026, published.
Facts: Conifer Insurance Co. provided workers' compensation insurance to the...
A New York appellate court ruled that a worker struck by a falling concrete form was entitled to summary judgment on his Labor Law claim and that the general contractor for the project was entitled to summary judgment dismissing part of the worker’s claim against it.
Case: Coronel v. Marcal Contracting Co. LLC, No. 34145/20, 02/03/2026, published.
Facts: Nelson Guadalupe Coronel worked as a carpenter for Capital Concrete NY Inc. He suffered injuries while working on a construction project when a concrete form came off the wall and fell on top of him from a height of approximately ...
A divided Virginia Court of Appeals ruled that workers’ compensation exclusivity barred a worker from pursuing a civil suit against his statutory co-employees.
Case: Villarroel v. Railing Systems LLC, No. 1572-24-4, 02/03/2026, unpublished.
Facts: Ronald Villarroel worked for Pristine Home Services. He suffered injuries while working on a residential construction project in 2021 when he stepped on a window well egress grate, which gave way, causing him to fall.
Procedural history: Villarroel filed suit against Railing Systems LLC, arguing that it created a dangerous condition by faili...
West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals vacated an award of 0% permanent partial disability to a longtime mine worker, finding the Board of Review failed to adequately consider and analyze the evidence in the claim.
Case: Smallwood v. Brooks Run South Mining LLC, No. 25-ICA-225, 02/03/2026, published.
Facts: Terry Smallwood filed a workers’ compensation claim, asserting he had 41 years of exposure to the hazards of occupational pneumoconiosis, ending with his employment with Brooks Run South Mining LLC.
Dr. Daniel Doyle signed a report confirming that Smallwood had occupat...
The Washington Senate passed a bill that would declare the intent of the Legislature to increase access to medical treatment and allow individualized determinations about the necessity of treatment for workplace injuries and occupational diseases.
SB 5847 would clarify that existing requirements for providers to adhere to specific treatment guidelines and policies would apply only when medically appropriate.
Providers who are part of the L&I network must agree to follow national treatment guidelines, evidence-based treatment guidelines promulgated by the Department of Labor and I...
The Virginia House of Delegates unanimously passed a bill that would provide workers' compensation coverage for the exacerbation of preexisting mental health conditions without an accompanying physical injury for law enforcement and firefighters.
The House on Tuesday voted 97-0 to pass HB 1313, which would clarify that coverage for so-called "mental-mental" claims also includes worsening of a preexisting disorder.
Legislation enacted in 2020 allowed claims for post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety disorder or depressive disorder without a physical injury when a firefighter or...
A sweeping workers' compensation reform bill backed by labor and management promising higher benefits, expanded coverage for first responder mental health claims and stiffer penalties for businesses that operate without insurance, is heading to the desk of Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers.
The agreed-upon reforms in AB 651 would also reverse a state high court decision allowing stacking disability percentages, and would clarify that the 12-year filing deadline for occupational disease claims can't be tolled indefinitely.
AB 651 would increase the maximum permanent partial disability be...
