NJ - High Court: Comp Judge Can Rule on Law She Sponsored in Assembly
12/12/2025 | 0
The New Jersey Supreme Court on Thursday affirmed an appellate decision allowing a workers' compensation judge to hear a case involving legislation she sponsored as a member of the Assembly creating a presumption that COVID-19 is compensable for essential workers.
The Appellate Division of the Superior Court in November 2024 held that a judge of compensation claims who formerly sponsored a bill is not automatically disqualified from presiding over cases implicating or interpreting that law.
"Thus, a judge's personal knowledge of or experience with certain legislative histor...
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The Arizona Court of Appeals upheld the closure of a worker’s claim for injuries from being punched in the jaw.
Case: Zawada v. Industrial Commission, No. 1 CA-IC 25-0010, 12/02/2025, unpublished.
Facts: Catherine Zawada worked for American Parking Inc. at a hospital. While she was at work in February 2023, an unruly patient blindsided her with a closed-fist punch to her jaw.
As she fell to the floor, Zawada's head hit the wall with such force that it left a dent in the drywall. She lost consciousness briefly and, upon regaining consciousness, was taken to the emergency room for e...
A New York appellate court ruled that a worker was entitled to summary judgment on his Labor Law claim for his fall from a ladder.
Case: Yagual v. Hudson Canal LLC, No. 24640/20, 12/02/2025, published.
Facts: Henry Yagual allegedly suffered injuries when he fell from an A-frame ladder as he was working at a construction project.
According to Yagual, he informed the foreman that the rubber feet were missing on part of the ladder, but the foreman instructed him to do the work nevertheless. The ladder shifted while Yagual was using it, causing him to fall backwards.
Procedural history: Yagual...
A divided Iowa Court of Appeals upheld a worker’s award of permanent partial disability benefits and alternate medical care.
Case: Koeller v. Cardinal Logistics Management Corp., No. 25-0172, 12/03/2025, published.
Facts: Kevin Koeller worked as a delivery driver for Cardinal Logistics Management Corp. He injured his shoulder at work in October 2022.
About two weeks later, Koeller saw a nurse practitioner who noted that his shoulder was bruised and his upper arm was swollen. An X-ray taken that day showed moderate AC joint osteoarthritis.
A magnetic resonance imaging scan perfor...
In the latest example of how indefensibly corrupt California’s workers’ compensation system has become, a former San Francisco city official pleaded guilty to embezzling $627,118 from municipal coffers by paying a fake company to “audit” workers’ comp claims.
Stanley Ellicott helped manage finances and technology for the San Francisco Department of Human Resources Workers’ Compensation Division.
In his role as a DHR official, Ellicott paid Independent Auditors Group to audit workers’ compensation claims. Ho...
West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals overturned a Board of Review decision that expanded a worker’s claim and authorized additional treatment, holding that it failed to address a doctor's report finding the treatment unnecessary.
Case: Marshall County Coal Resources v. Yarbrough, No. 25-ICA-140, 12/04/2025, published.
Facts: Colby Yarbrough worked for Marshall County Coal Resources. He injured his left ankle at work in October 2023.
Nurse practitioner Gail Nickerson diagnosed a sprain. A claims administrator for Marshall’s insurance carrier accepted ...
The Connecticut Division of Criminal Justice on Thursday announced that a business owner was arrested and charged with failing to provide workers' compensation coverage.
Lou Milardo, 58, is the principal owner of Lou Milardo Builders and J&L Milardo.
Lou Milardo Builders never had workers' compensation coverage, the division said.
An employee of Lou Milardo Builders was seriously injured in August 2021. Because there was no workers' compensation coverage, the state's Second Injury Fund has provided more than $85,000 in combined medical and indemnity benefits, the divisio...
A Florida lawmaker has resurrected a proposal to define the conditions covered by the law that presumes heart disease is compensable for first responders.
Rep. Judson Sapp, R-Putnam, on Wednesday introduced House Bill 739, which would define heart disease in Section 112.18 as "any organic, mechanical or functional abnormality of the heart, its structures or the coronary arteries."
Lawmakers did not define heart disease when they enacted Section 112.18 and its presumption that heart disease, hypertension and tuberculosis are occupational conditions for firefighters, law enforcement ...
Hospital security guards in Illinois would be covered by presumptions for blood-borne pathogens, heart and lung diseases, and other conditions, under legislation introduced ahead of the 2026 session.
Illinois law presumes that firefighters, EMTs and paramedics who develop conditions including staph infections and MRSA, lung or respiratory disease, heart or vascular disease, hypertension, tuberculosis or cancer contracted them on the job. The law also presumes that hearing loss and hernias arose from employment for firefighters, emergency medical personnel and paramedics with at least five yea...
The Missouri Court of Appeals upheld an order from the Labor and Industrial Relations Commission ordering a carrier to pay the full amount billed by a treatment provider for an injured worker’s knee surgery.
An employee of S&B Hauling & Construction suffered a knee injury at work in July 2020. S&B’s insurance carrier authorized The Center for Surgical Specialties PC to perform arthroscopic surgery to repair the employee's knee.
Surgical Specialties billed the carrier $19,763 for its services. The carrier paid Surgical Specialties $11,566.52 but refused to pay...
A New York appellate court revived a worker’s Labor Law claim for injuries from a falling object and ordered that summary judgment be granted in his favor.
Case: Rivera v. Site 2 DSA Owner LLC, No. 159502/20, 12/02/2025, published.
Facts: Danny Rivera suffered injuries while working with others to lift a 400-to-600-pound gang box into a truck. According to Rivera, the box began to fall, and he was hurt when he used his leg to stop its descent.
Procedural history: Rivera filed suit against Site 2 DSA Owner LLC, Delancey Street Associates LLC and T.G. Nickel & Associates L...
The Arkansas Court of Appeals upheld an award of benefits to a worker who was injured by falling while walking to her car, despite her inconsistent explanations.
Case: Dardanelle Public Schools v. Ewton, No. CV-25-148, 12/03/2025, published.
Facts: Andrea Ewton worked as a substitute custodian for Dardanelle Public Schools.
On Aug. 15, 2023, Ewton arrived at a Dardanelle campus, went into the main office and clocked in.
While she remained on the clock, Ewton walked to her car through the parking lot. She gave differing accounts of whether she was retrieving a water bott...
West Virginia’s Intermediate Court of Appeals upheld the expansion of a worker’s claim to include a neck injury from an accident where he was struck on the head by a falling concrete block.
Case: Marshall County Coal Resources v. Kessler, No. 25-ICA-246, 12/04/2025, published.
Facts: Joshua Kessler worked for Marshall County Coal Resources. A falling concrete block struck him on the head and knocked him off a ladder while he was at work in February 2024.
At the hospital, Kessler denied loss of consciousness, denied neck or back pain and denied any other injury. A computed t...
The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration fined an engineering and construction firm in Georgia $20,522 after an investigation into a worker's death.
OSHA cited Hyoungwon E&C America Inc. for serious violations, including failing to protect employees against asphyxiation hazards related to nitrogen gas and not providing effective information and training on hazards related to nitrogen gas and oxygen-deficient atmospheres.
The agency said the citations resulted from an investigation into a worker fatality at Hanwa Q Cells Georgia Inc. in White, but it did not d...
The Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Division fined a contractor $128,345 for numerous violations, including repeated violations of fall protection standards.
Oregon OSHA said on Wednesday that it cited Shrader Homes Inc. for five violations of requirements to protect workers from serious injury or death. One of the violations was a fourth repeat infraction for failing to provide fall protection, the agency said. Another was a second repeat violation of a ladder safety rule.
"Falls are one of the leading causes of death in the construction industry," the agency said. "Ore...
An Idaho transformer manufacturer is facing nearly $1 million in penalties for allegedly not correcting hazards identified by federal inspectors.
The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration said a June 2025 inspection found that Virginia Transformer Corp. in Pocatello exposed its workers to hazards similar to those uncovered during inspections in 2024 involving cranes used to handle heavy loads with faulty brakes and switches.
OSHA said it cited the company for 53 serious and repeat violations for not guarding machines, exposing workers to fall hazards and not providing personal p...
