Supreme Court Invalidates Cap in Benefits for Undocumented Workers

The Tennessee Supreme Court this week ruled that a statutory cap on comp benefits payable to undocumented workers is unconstitutional. Tennessee Code Annotated Section 50-6-241(e)(2)(A) limits an undocumented worker's permanent partial disability award for an on-the-job injury after July 1, 2009, to one and a half times the rate set for the claimant's medical impairment rating. Employees with legal authorization to work are entitled to a multiplier of up to six times their medical impairment rating. Last year, a state chancery court judge found the General Assembly's enactm...