CA - Court: Determining Responsibility for Concealed Hazard Not Suited for Summary Judgment
04/28/2026 | 0
Whether a subcontractor hired to line a pit with concrete was responsible for assessing the safety of the excavation work performed by the hiring party is a question of fact that precludes summary judgment, a California appeals court ruled in an unpublished decision.
The owner of De Jong's Dover Dairy LLC excavated a pit and hired Supreme Construction Inc. to pour and install concrete walls. Supreme employee Luis Felipe Diaz Ornelas was injured when the trench walls collapsed while he was working inside the pit.
Ornelas sued the dairy.
He introduced the opinion of a civil and geotechnic...
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A divided Iowa Supreme Court ruled that a worker could not continue to pursue a claim against the state Second Injury Fund after entering a compromise settlement with her employer that did not establish the employer’s liability for her injury.
Case: Kingsbury v. Second Injury Fund of Iowa, No. 25–0717, 04/24/2026, published.
Facts: Sarah Kingsbury worked as a pharmacy technician for Walmart. She suffered injuries at work in August 2021 when she tripped and fell over a box.
Procedural history: Kingsbury filed a workers’ compensation claim against Walmart based on injuries t...
A Florida appellate court ruled that exclusivity did not shield a general contractor from liability for a worker’s death resulting from a fall that occurred when he came to the project site in preparation to bid on a subcontract.
Case: Willis A. Smith Construction Inc. v. Keathley, No. 2D2025-1900, 04/24/2026, published.
Facts: Willis A. Smith Construction Inc. had a contract as a continuing service provider for the University of South Florida. WASC was tasked with restoring a structure on USF's Sarasota Campus known as the John C. Williams House.
WASC issued an open invitation to...
West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld the expansion of a worker’s claim to include additional conditions and an award of temporary total disability benefits.
Case: Mastec Inc. v. Blackwell, No. 25-ICA-344 and No. 25-ICA-406, 04/07/2026, published.
Facts: In August 2022, Brett Blackwell saw Dr. Robert Johnston with complaints of bilateral shoulder pain for more than two months, and sharp rib to chest pain. An X-ray revealed mild acromioclavicular degeneration.
In April 2024, Blackwell saw Johnston again. Johnston’s assessment included an anterior-to...
In workers’ compensation, the best file is often a closed file. But settling a case is not always straightforward.
One issue that arises when settling out future medical care is whether the parties should address Medicare’s future interests through a Medicare set-aside arrangement.
What is an MSA?
An MSA is a financial arrangement that allocates part of a workers’ compensation settlement to pay for future medical treatment related to the industrial injury that would otherwise be covered by Medicare. These expenses may include physician visits, hospital care, surge...
A New York appellate court ruled that a worker was entitled to partial summary judgment on his Labor Law claim, and his employer was entitled to summary judgment dismissing the third-party claims against it.
Case: Speechio v. Starbucks Corp., No. 161323/18, 04/02/2026, published.
Facts: Joseph Speechio worked for Eclipse Contracting Corp., a carpentry subcontractor for a construction project. Shawmut served as the general contractor.
Speechio allegedly suffered injuries while working on the project when he slipped on a piece of loose electrical wire as he walked around a pile of discarded w...
The Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission announced a pair of arbitrator transfers taking effect May 1.
Arbitrators Linda Cantrell and Brad Gillespie will switch dockets, the commission announced. Cantrell will hear all matters previously set for hearing in May by Gillespie, while Gillespie will hear all matters previously set to be heard by Cantrell.
Cantrell will be assigned to Zone 1, covering Collinsville, Herrin and Mount Vernon. Gillespie will be assigned to Zone 2, covering Springfield, Quincy and Urbana.
All settlement contracts, motions and petitions submitted for these doc...
Members of the Arizona House of Representatives added five years of retroactive effect to a bill intended to close a loophole that carriers have allegedly used to deny cancer claims from first responders that are presumed to arise from employment under state law.
The House on Monday voted 53-4 to send an amended SB 1215 back to the Senate. The amended bill would apply retroactively to June 30, 2021.
SB 1215 would itemize the list of the eight specific types of cancer that are presumed to be compensable occupational diseases for peace officers, and the 23 cancers that are presumed to arise fr...
The Nebraska Supreme Court upheld a jury verdict awarding benefits to a railroad dispatcher for her ankle injury that was largely apportioned to her own fault, and that denied the employer an offset to the short-term disability it had paid.
Chaylea Cramer worked as a dispatcher for Union Pacific Railroad Co. She twisted her left ankle at work in August 2017 while descending a flight of stairs leading toward a restroom.
Cramer cared for her ankle at home that night and wore a brace to work the next day. She then met with a superior who allegedly encouraged her not to report the incident....
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 ladder.
Case: Bista v. State of New York, No. 2024-05540, 04/01/2026, published.
Facts: Krzystof Bista allegedly suffered injuries when he fell off a ladder while working on a construction project at Farmingdale State College.
Procedural history: Bista filed suit against the State of New York, asserting a claim for a violation of Labor Law Section 240(1).
Section 240(1) imposes absolute liability on property owners, general contractors or ...
An Ohio appellate court outlined what a worker needs to allege to plead a viable employer intentional tort claim and ruled that the victim of a workplace shooting failed to satisfy the standard.
Case: Harris v. Tri-Tech Laboratories LLC, No. 2025 CA 00079, 03/31/2026, published.
Facts: Nicholas Harris worked for Tri-Tech Laboratories LLC. On Feb. 4, 2025, a gunman entered his workplace and opened fire, killing two people and wounding four, including Harris.
Tri-Tech employee Bruce Foster III stands accused of the crime. His trial is set to begin later this year.
Procedural history: Ha...
West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals ruled that the Board of Review erred in awarding attorney fees to a worker after finding that a claims administrator had unreasonably declared an overpayment of benefits to her.
Case: WVNH Emp LLC v. Swisher, No. 25-ICA-374, 04/07/2026, published.
Facts and procedural history: Maureen Swisher worked for WVNH Emp LLC as a certified nursing assistant. She injured her right shoulder at work in July 2023 and began collecting temporary total disability benefits.
In September 2024, a claims administrator for WVNH’s insurance carrier issued...
A California Senate committee passed a bill that would eliminate an "outdated" requirement that airport firefighters complete a state-mandated training program to be covered by workers' compensation presumptions.
The Senate Committee on Labor, Public Employment and Retirement on Wednesday voted 5-0 to pass SB 1444, a multifaceted measure written by the committee.
The bill includes a provision relating to a law enacted last year making firefighters at commercial airports regulated by the Federal Aviation Administration eligible for presumptions covering heart trouble, herni...
A California Assembly committee passed a bill that would create a mandatory certification process for companies engaged in fabrication activities involving manufactured stone.
The Assembly Labor and Employment Committee on Wednesday unanimously passed AB 2137, by Assemblymember Phillip Chen, R-Brea.
The bill would require the Department of Industrial Relations to develop an application and certification process by Jan. 1, 2028, and to develop an initial deposit process for shops to pay fees while applications are under review.
Fabrication shops would be required to post a fee determined by ...
The Texas Division of Workers’ Compensation approved a 2026 Medical Quality Review Annual Audit Plan that will focus on the prescriptions for topical analgesics.
In December, the division solicited feedback on whether to focus on evaluating utilization review agent peer review reports for compliance with the Official Disability Guidelines, accepted standards of care and appropriate reviewer selection, or the medical necessity and appropriateness of topical analgesic prescriptions.
The division on Thursday said it selected the topical analgesic audit based on stakeholder feedback. The a...