UPS Did Not Violate FMLA in Firing Employee Who Was on Intermittent FMLA Leave
Intermittent leave can be extremely difficult for employers. One important point for employers to realize is that an employee on intermittent leave who comes to work in between flare-ups may be held to all customary performance standards. The case of Parks v. UPS Supply Chain Solutions, Inc. 2014 U.S. DIST LEXIS 13538 (E.D. Kentucky 2014) […]
New Jersey Supreme Court Reverses Key Ruling by Appellate Court that Vested Original Jurisdiction on Employee Status With the Division of Workers’ Compensation
In 2014 an important appellate court decision was decided on whether all cases involving the interpretation of employee status must be referred to the Division of Workers’ Compensation. On June 11, 2015, the New Jersey Supreme Court reversed the Appellate Division in Estate of Myroslava Kotsovska v. Saul Liebman (A-89-13) (073861). The facts were tragic. […]
Section 20 Settlement Versus Order Approving Settlement
Every New Jersey workers’ compensation practitioner must evaluate the benefits of a Section 20, (which is a lump sum full and final payment), versus an order approving settlement, (which involves an award of a percentage of disability under Section 22). About twice as many cases settle under orders approving settlement in New Jersey than under […]
Appellate Court Affirms Some Sanctions Against Employer and Reverses Other Sanctions
Sanctions against an employer in workers’ compensation are rather rare, and the case of Pschunder-Haaf v. Synergy Home Care of South Jersey, A-3138-13T3, (App. Div. May 12, 2015) provides some guidance on conduct that may lead to such sanctions. The petitioner, Pschunder-Haaf, a home health aide, injured her low back when a patient fell on […]
Plaintiff’s Disability Discrimination Claim Doomed by Contradictory Statements to Social Security
Alphonso Myers worked as a security guard and was injured in that position. He applied for and received social security disability benefits. In his application, he advised the Social Security Administration that he was in pain all the time during the period of his application, he could only stand for twenty minutes and could only […]
Does New Jersey Have Something Similar to Partial Temp Benefits in Workers’ Compensation?
The old adage is that New Jersey is a not a partial temp state, but is that really true? In some states, like New Hampshire, an employee who returns to work but due to disability cannot earn the amount he or she was earning before the work injury may be eligible for significant benefits. The […]
Judge of Compensation Properly Denied Employee’s Request for Commutation of Settlement
Unlike many states, most settlements in New Jersey are paid out over a period of weeks, often with payments carrying out well into the future. For example, if an employee receives an award of 40% permanent partial disability, the award is paid over 240 weeks in equal payments beginning with the last payment of temporary […]
Employer Waived Its Objection to Policy Cancellation by Waiting Seven Years before Raising Issue of Proper Cancellation
Janice Davis was injured on April 23, 2007 in a work-related accident. She filed a claim petition promptly against Yassien Mobility Assistance & Ambulance, Inc., her employer. On October 1, 2007, Yassien filed an answer stating that it had no insurance for workers’ compensation. The Uninsured Employers’ Fund (UEF) was joined in the matter as […]
Court Allows Claimant to Reopen Previously Dismissed Claim Based on Dishonesty of Claimant’s Attorney
Cases dismissed under N.J.S.A. 34:15-54 for lack of prosecution are permanently closed if not reinstated within one year. The matter of Kost v. GPU Energy, A-0858-13T3 (App. Div. 2015) offers one exception to the rule. Richard Kost filed seven claims against GPU Energy/JCP&L in 2003. He also filed a parallel civil action which was pending […]
PIP Carrier’s Claim Petition Is Rejected for Failure to Show Work Connection
What can a PIP carrier do when it believes the bills it has paid arise from a workers’ compensation case but the injured party has never filed a claim? In New Jersey, the PIP carrier has a right to file a workers’ compensation claim petition in the name of the injured worker, but there is […]
Appellate Court Fine Tunes Standards for Motions for Medical and Temporary Benefits
Sometimes the seemingly minor cases have significant long-term impact. The case of Amedeo v. United Parcel Service, A-1013-13T2 (App. Div. April 8, 2015) may be one of those cases. Thomas Amedeo suffered a work injury in 2009 in the employment of UPS. He filed a workers’ compensation claim petition and ultimately received an award of […]
Misuse Of The Term “Aggravation” Causes Huge Overpayments In Workers’ Compensation
SCENARIO ONE: An employee has a preexisting arthritic knee condition that his personal physician says will require imminent knee replacement. Three months later this employee steps off a truck at work and feels pain in the knee. He reports the incident to his employer, who sends him for treatment. The doctor orders an MRI, stating […]
Court Holds that Employee With Restrictions Who Was Terminated Should Have Chance to Prove Reasonable Accommodations Could Have Been Made by Employer
Many employers have 100% healed policies that can redound to their detriment in court. That was the situation in Kauffman v. Petersen Health Care, VII, LLC, 769 F.3d 958 (7th Cir. 2014). Debra Kauffman worked as one of two hairdressers at Mason Point Nursing Home in central Illinois. On Mondays and Tuesdays, she would wheel […]
Court Rejects Claim for Employee Injured on Ground Floor Elevator in Multi-Tenant Building
The case of Burke v. Investors Bank, A-1551-13T1 (App. Div. March 16, 2015) underscores an important point for New Jersey practitioners: one is not considered to be at work in a multi-tenant building until one arrives at the employer’s business. On December 3, 2012, Laura Burke parked her car in the parking garage of the […]
City That Cancelled Health Insurance After Firefighter Exhausted FMLA Did Not Violate COBRA
Very few cases have focused on the relationship between COBRA and FMLA. The case of Neal v. City of Danville, Virginia, 2014 U.S. Dist LEXIS 17126, W. D. Va. (December 11, 2014) provides employers with important insight on this issue. Barry Neal, a firefighter, was severely injured in a non-work accident on February 1, 2013. […]
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