DE - Sole Proprietor Not Covered by Comp for Injuries From Employee Attack
03/05/2026 | 0
The Delaware Supreme Court ruled that a sole proprietor was not entitled to coverage under his company’s workers’ compensation policy for his injuries from being attacked by an employee.
Robert Bayly was the sole proprietor of Red House Motors and Bayly’s Garage. He purchased a workers’ compensation insurance policy from Federated Reserve Insurance Co. for his employees, and an executive personal liability policy for himself.
Bayly was named in the workers’ compensation policy, but only as the sole proprietor of the businesses and not as an employee.
Delaware C...
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The Alabama Court of Civil Appeals upheld a determination that a worker with a disabling heart condition was permanently and totally disabled by a shoulder injury alone.
Case: Professional Education Services Group LLC v. Ford, No. CL-2025-0215, 02/13/2026, published.
Facts: Richard Ford worked for Professional Education Services Group LLC, doing heating, ventilation and air conditioning work. In June 2019, Ford injured his left shoulder at work.
Dr. Thomas Thomasson performed a reverse total shoulder arthroplasty on Ford's left shoulder in June 2020.
Ford underwent a functional capacit...
The West Virginia Supreme Court upheld the denial of a teacher’s claim of injury from dancing with a group of kindergarteners.
Case: Conley v. Logan County Board of Education, No. 25-660, 02/13/2026, published.
Facts: Christie Conley worked for the Logan County Board of Education as a physical education teacher. She filed a workers’ compensation claim, asserting that she had injured her left hip while dancing with kindergarten pupils.
X-rays taken that same day showed no acute abnormality, but Conley reported constant hip pain to Dr. Robert McCleary at an appointment two weeks l...
A New York appellate court ruled that a worker struck by a falling chisel should have been granted summary judgment on his Labor Law claim.
Case: Contreras v. City of New York, No. 161063/19, 01/20/2026, published.
Facts: Roger J. Contreras allegedly suffered injuries when a chisel fell and struck him while he was taking a designated coffee break at a construction project involving an exterior restoration of a five-story school.
Contreras testified that he took his break either on or underneath the sidewalk bridge on the jobsite with two other co-workers. He claimed that the scaffolding abo...
The changes proposed by the Gov. Gavin Newsom administration in the SIBTF trailer bill are going to have wide-ranging and serious effects, both on Subsequent Injuries Benefits Trust Fund claims and on the underlying industrial claim.
Consider the following:
1. Medical legal evidence can be obtained only in the basic case, and there shall be no “SIBTF medical reports.”
What that means is that all discovery (likely at the cost of the industrial carrier on the subsequent industrial injury) will have to occur in the basic case. All evidence of pre-existing disability, all ...
The Arizona Senate passed a bill that would allow spouses of first responders killed at work to continue receiving death benefits after remarriage.
The Senate on Tuesday voted 26-4 to pass SB 1136, which would require paying death benefits to the surviving spouse of a first responder until the spouse's death. Death benefits for other types of workers are paid until death or remarriage.
First responders covered by the bill include peace officers, firefighters, paramedics and volunteers operating in an official capacity on behalf of a governmental entity during an emergency or law enforcem...
Oregon lawmakers voted to send the governor a bill that would modify how total disability benefits are calculated.
The state House of Representatives on Tuesday voted 52-0 to pass SB 1519, which would create a tiered structure for temporary total and permanent total disability benefits.
Currently, benefits are two-thirds of a worker's weekly wages and capped at 133% of the state's average weekly wage.
Benefits for workers injured on or after Jan. 1 would be 75% of the portion of a worker's wage that is equal to or less than 75% of the state's average weekly wage, and 6...
Lawmakers in Washington voted to send the governor a bill requested by the Department of Labor and Industries that would allow the agency to use electronic notices for communications currently sent through the mail.
The department, which administers the workers' compensation and workplace safety programs, and enforces hour and wage laws and licensing or registration requirements for certain professions, regularly mails notices to employees, employers and other entities. State law requires that most notices be sent by mail in a way that they can be tracked and delivery can be confirmed.
S...
Tower MSA Partners is holding a webinar on Wednesday to explore how changes to Medicare Secondary Payer rules are impacting workers' compensation claims.
So-called Section 111 mandatory requirements to report settlement information to Medicare went into effect last year. The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services also discontinued formal review of $0 set-asides.
As CMS prepares to initiate its first round of Section 111 reporting audits, Tower Chief Compliance Officer Dan Anders will discuss what all the changes mean for carriers, self-insured employers and defense attorneys...
The Idaho Supreme Court upheld the summary dismissal of a father’s claims against an employer for the death of his son.
Colby Eldon Johnson worked for Beadz Brothers Farms. In the early morning of Aug.18, 2020, shortly after the end of the shift, Johnson’s co-workers discovered his lifeless body entangled in machinery.
No one saw what had happened, but it appeared Johnson was attempting to repair the connection between a truck and a self-unloading bed when he became caught and pulled into the gears.
Johnson’s father filed a civil suit against Beadz Brothers, asserting...
The Iowa Court of Appeals upheld the summary dismissal of a worker’s gross negligence claim against a co-employee for his brother’s fatal railcar accident.
Case: Stalkfleet v. Stroughmatt, No. 24-1816, 02/11/2026, published.
Facts: Damon Stalkfleet and his brother, Dillon Stalkfleet, were a part of a switch operation team at Bakery Feeds railyard. Damon’s job was to operate a Rail King railcar mover, and Dillon served as a spotter.
The Rail King was equipped with an air brake system, but the air brakes were not working. The Rail King also had a wheel brake, which required ...
A Texas appellate court dismissed a self-represented worker’s attempt to challenge his impairment rating due to a lack of jurisdiction.
Case: Juarez v. Texas Mutual Insurance Co., No. 10-26-00042-CV, 02/26/2026, published.
Facts and procedural history: Jesus Juarez worked for CellTech Cargo LLC. He filed suit against CellTech, seeking damages for alleged personal injuries.
This lawsuit was nonsuited with prejudice in August 2025.
Juarez also filed a claim with the Texas Division of Workers’ Compensation.
During the workers’ compensation proceedings, Juarez was found to h...
West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld the denial of benefits for a worker’s occupational pneumoconiosis, finding he did not establish that he was exposed to abnormal quantities of dust during the course of and resulting from his employment.
Case: Kessler v. West Virginia Paving Inc., No. 25-ICA-275, 02/06/2026, published.
Facts: Joseph Kessler worked as a section boss in a coal mine for Carbon Fuel from 1975 to 1982; as a miner operator for Terry Coal from 1986 to 1987; as a motor man in a coal mine for Gauley Mine Services from 2001 to 2002; and as a rock qua...
New York State Workers’ Compensation Fraud Inspector General Lucy Lang on Tuesday announced that a man pleaded guilty to fraud for working while collecting more than $10,000 in workers' compensation benefits.
Christopher Cronk, 58, claimed he could not work because of an ankle injury sustained in the course of his work as a painter for Cutting Edge Painting in March 2021.
"But by March 2022, Cronk had resumed paid painting work at private properties and businesses — surveillance footage captured him working, witness statements confirmed it, and bank records reflected pay...
Kentucky's Department of Workers' Claims would be administratively attached to the governor's office under recently introduced legislation.
SB 343 would transfer the department from the Education and Labor Cabinet, a move that could give the governor's office more direct oversight of the agency.
Though many state agencies in Kentucky are led by a cabinet secretary appointed by the governor, others, including the Local Government and Military Affairs departments, are directly attached to the governor's office. In theory, this removes a layer of bureaucracy and promote...
The Hispanic Insurance and Risk Management Association and WorkCompCentral are hosting a free webinar March 13 to discuss cumulative trauma injuries.
The panel will cover adjuster and employer responsibilities, evolving legal standards, increasing awareness of mental health issues and emerging trends regarding compensability. Presenters will also share insights from depositions and discuss what can create unnecessary exposure.
Speakers include Evelyn Medina, a senior associate at AVR Law; Sandy Avina, claims services manager at the California Schools JPA; and Annie Pomer, claims director at ...
