John H. Geaney
John H. Geaney, a shareholder and co-chair of Capehart Scatchard's Workers' Compensation department, began an email newsletter entitled Currents in Workers’ Compensation, ADA and FMLA in 2001 in order to keep clients and readers informed on leading developments in these three areas of law. Since that time he has written over 500 newsletter updates.
Mr. Geaney is the author of Geaney’s New Jersey Workers’ Compensation Manual for Practitioners, Adjusters & Employers. The manual is distributed by the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education (NJICLE). He also authored an ADA and FMLA manual as distributed by NJICLE. If you are interested in purchasing the manual, please contact NJICLE at 732-214-8500 or visit their website at www.njicle.com.
Mr. Geaney represents employers in the defense of workers’ compensation, ADA and FMLA matters. He is a Fellow of the College of Workers’ Compensation Lawyers of the American Bar Association and is certified by the Supreme Court of New Jersey as a workers’ compensation law attorney. He is one of two firm representatives to the National Workers’ Compensation Defense Network. He has served on the Executive Committee of Capehart Scatchard for over ten (10) years.
A graduate of Holy Cross College summa cum laude, Mr. Geaney obtained his law degree from Boston College Law School. He has been named a “Super Lawyer” by his peers and Law and Politics. He serves as Vice President of the Friends of MEND, the fundraising arm of a local charitable organization devoted to promoting affordable housing.
Capehart Scatchard is a full service law firm with offices in Mt. Laurel and Trenton, New Jersey. The firm represents employers and businesses in a wide variety of areas, including workers’ compensation, civil litigation, labor, environmental, business, estates and governmental affairs.
Appellate Division Bars Civil Claim by DPW Worker Who Planned to Leave Work Early But Was In A Car Accident on the Way Back to DPW Office To Fill Out Paperwork for Supervisor to Sign
Victor Campos worked for the Department of Public Works for the City of Passaic. On December 23, 2013, he was performing maintenance work at City Hall when he began to feel ill. He made the decision to go home early, but first he had to notify his employer that he was finished for the day […]
Widow Loses Dependency Claim Based on Failure to Prove That Her Husband Was Exposed to Asbestos
Dennis Lomet worked for Lawes Coal Company from 1987 to 2012 when he died of lung cancer at the age of 47. He installed, removed, or repaired heating and air conditioning equipment. He never smoked cigarettes. Before he died, he told one of his treating physicians that he thought he had been exposed to chemicals, […]
Appellate Division Reverses Substantial Award to Custodian Who Contended Five Years of Custodial Work Caused a Need for Bilateral Knee Replacements
Patrick Malone began working for the Pennsauken Board of Education in 2007 as a custodian. He said he would sweep floors, take out the trash, clean the blackboards and desktops, remove gum and shoe marks from floors, sometimes climb ladders, and clean toilets, floors and walls. He also said in the summer he would remove […]
Employer Has Lien Rights on High/Low Agreement In Medical Malpractice Case Arising From Workers’ Compensation Claim
In Marano v. Clifford J. Schob, M.D., A-33915-16T2 (App. Div. June 20, 2018), the Appellate Division held that New Jersey’s lien provision does apply to funds that an injured worker received in a medical malpractice suit pursuant to the terms of a “high/low” agreement. The case affirmed a prior ruling in Pool v. Morristown Memorial […]
The End of Voluntary Offers in New Jersey?
On June 21, 2018 the New Jersey Assembly passed Senate 2145, which is a bill long lobbied for by counsel for injured workers. The measure passed by a 2-1 margin and now goes to the Governor for signature, the Senate already having passed the bill. The legislation makes a significant change in removing the incentive […]
Accident Walking To Car Found Compensable In Application for Accidental Disability Pension
New Jersey public employees who are unable to work due to work accidents may apply for generous accidental disability pensions, providing approximately two thirds to 70% of pay with no federal taxes owed. The standards for an accidental disability pension are rather similar to those in a workers’ compensation case, as is shown by the […]
Employer Did Not Violate FMLA in Firing Employee Recovering From Workers’ Comp Injury
Robert Stein worked for Atlas Industries. He tore his meniscus at work and ten weeks into his recovery he saw the treating surgeon, who allegedly said that Stein would not be released from work until August 10th. Stein admitted that the surgeon gave him a release slip to return to work on July 20th but […]
The Most Common Mistake In Permanency Assessments: Evaluating Medical Records, Not Individuals
Assessing permanent disability is such a vital aspect of every formal workers’ compensation claim petition. New Jersey is a loss of function state unlike the more common wage loss states. An employee can return to his or her job following treatment or surgery, perform the very same work tasks, and still remain eligible for a […]
Why Prompt Reporting Policies Are Crucial Even If New Jersey’s Notice Statute Remains Weak
The failure to report a claim in a timely manner generally leads to powerful defenses that help employers prevail in workers’ compensation court. But lack of timely notice is seldom one of those defenses in New Jersey. That sounds like a conundrum. Shouldn’t lack of timely notice be the first defense that jumps to one’s […]
Appellate Division Holds Employee Who Was Required To Report To Work During Snow Storm Was Covered During Commute Even Though He Was Reporting To Normal Work Site
In a rather unique unreported case, the Appellate Division recently held that a drive to the normal work site can be considered compensable on the facts in Minter v. Mattson, A-1916-15T4 (App. Div. May 10, 2018). The case involved a kitchen worker, Antoine Minter, who called out of work due to a heavy snow storm […]
Police Officer Who Could Not Drive Failed In His Disability Discrimination Suit
Jeremy Christensen worked as a patrol officer for the Warner Robins Police Department in the State of Georgia. He completed a required 12-week certification training program. However, he experienced shooting pains and leg cramps while driving on September 2, 2013. Nonetheless, he finished the program and began a one-year probationary period required for all new […]
Rules Regarding Future Payments Under Permanency Awards and Commutations
New Jersey adjusters sometimes ask why future benefits under an order approving settlement with a percentage of disability cannot be paid in a lump sum to the injured worker. In other words, why is there a requirement that future payments be paid out over a period of many weeks or even many years? This question […]
Audience Quiz: Two New Jersey Comp Brain Teasers
Today’s blog contains two interesting workers’ compensation quizzes, which were asked at the April 19, 2018 Millennium Seminar in Mt. Laurel, N.J. We invite readers to email responses. Next week the winning answers will be announced. Question One: Jane Friedman is a CPA for Best Accountants. She left her office to visit a client one […]
Appellate Division Rejects Reopener of High Percentage Award
New Jersey employers like reopener claims about as much as homeowners like back-to-back blizzards. The general view is that employers have virtually no defenses and have to pay more with each reopener. The truth is that employers can win reopener cases where the petitioner’s expert cannot really prove the petitioner’s condition has worsened since the […]
Employer May Have Violated Both The ADA and FMLA Regarding Plaintiff’s Knee Injury Arising Out Of His Employment
Skilled practitioners know they must keep an eye on potential employment litigation stemming from workers’ compensation claims. The case of Dallefeld v. The Clubs at River City, Inc., 2017 AD Cases 244151 (D. Illinois 2017) provides a good illustration. Jason Dallefeld was the Director of Membership Sales, providing tours, selling memberships, and making sure other […]
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