MT's 30 Day Reporting Rule Strictly Construed

Montana's Workers' Compensation Act requires an employee to report injuries within 30 days after the accident occurs, or no claim for compensation will be considered. This rule was recently upheld by the Montana Supreme Court in ruling a 65-year-old home care aide couldn't recover for a back injury because she failed to make a timely report. In Edna Hanks vs. Liberty Northwest Insurance Corp. (No. 02-298, 12/20/02), Hanks, 65 years old in January 2001, felt a "krik" or "twinge" in her back while helping an Alzheimer's patient dress. Hanks described the event as causing a " pop-type sound" an...