Jon L. Gelman
05-25-2004, 01:24 AM
RECENT CASES
-TRAUMA INSUFFICIENT TO CAUSE HERNIATION
-COURT PERMITTED TO APPOINT INDEPENDENT PAIN MANAGEMENT EXPERT
-TEMPORARY DISABILITY BENEFITS AWARDED "ON THE PAPERS"
-OCCUPATIONAL BACK HELD NOT COMPENSABLE
-RIGHT TO CONTROL DETERMINES EMPLOYMENT STATUS
-DEVIATION BAR RECOVERY
-SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE – FIBROMYALGIA
-LATEX EXPOSURE ACCEPTED AS A SPECIFIC EVENT
-LATEX EVIDENCE PROVES CAUSAL RELATIONSHIP TO AGGRAVATION OF
DERMATOLOGICAL CONDITION
-SELF-INSURED EMPLOYERS HELD TO DIFFERENT STANDARD
-NJ DIRECTOR ISSUES MEMORANDUM ON COUNSEL FEES OVER $30,000.
For these stories and more visit http://www.gelmans.com
***
FRUSTRATIONS OF 9-11 VICTIMS SEEKING WORKERS' COMPENSATION
Many Who Served on 9/11 Are Still Pressing Fight for Workers'
Compensation
It is in places like Judge Mark Solomon's workers' compensation
courtroom in Brooklyn that lingering questions about the health
consequences of the Sept. 11 attack on the World Trade Center are
fought over day after day.
Workers take seats at one end of the dark wood table in front of Judge
Solomon, their hands jittery, their ankles crossed nervously. Flanked
by lawyers, they struggle to explain how they became sick, and in some
cases unable to work, because of what happened in the days and weeks
after the twin towers collapsed.
NY Times 5.13.04
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/05/13/nyregion/13comp.html?ei=1&en=57dc3cfc20e38c4a&ex=1085446132&pagewanted=print&position=
***
WCRI RELEASES REPORT ON IOWA
Higher maximum weekly benefit levels for injured workers and stable
costs for employers have set Iowa's workers' compensation system apart
from other states. However, the Iowa system was not without areas for
improvement, according to a new study by the Workers Compensation
Research Institute (WCRI).
http://www.wcrinet.org/media_release_5_11_04.html
***
ARTHRITIS
Arthritis is the leading cause of disability in the United States and
its prevalence is expected to increase as the U.S. population ages
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5318a2.htm
***
JOB LOSSES ERODE UNION MEMBERSHIP
Ongoing layoffs and the anti-union posture of the Bush administration
are slicing union membership. The Bureau of Labor Statistics recently
released new data on union membership for 2003, documenting the
ongoing decline in private sector unionization. The number of workers
who are union members fell by 369,000 to 15.8 million.
http://laborresearch.org/story2.php/347
***
LEAD PAINT
Independent contractor barred from recovery under "exclusion"
provision in policy.
Linda M. Heringer, Appellant, v. American Family Mutual Insurance
Company, et al., Respondent, WD62995, Mo. App. West. Div., 05/04/2004
http://www.osca.state.mo.us/courts/pubopinions.nsf/e53581bdd14e64858625661f004bc8fd/333e6f0be048114e86256e89005e7c0a?OpenDocument
***
WELDING ROD LITIGATION - VERDICT
Pennsylvania Jury Returns Verdict Against Welding Rod Defendants
In just the third known verdict against welding rod manufacturers, a
Pennsylvania jury today awarded former welder Thomas Yencho $500,000
against BOC (Airco) and Lincoln Electric Co., finding that the welding
companies negligently exposed Yencho to defective products that caused
his lung cancer (Thomas J. Yencho and Reena Yencho v. A.W. Chesterton
Inc. et al., No. 2003-0884, Pa. Comm. Pls., Philadelphia Co.).
***
RATES
N.Y. Businesses 'Stunned' by 29% Comp Rate Hike Bid
A recommendation from the New York Compensation Insurance Rating Board
(CIRB) to increase employers' average workers' compensation premiums
by 29 percent is "stunning and frightening," according to Business
Council of New York President Daniel B. Walsh.
Insurance Journal
http://www.insurancejournal.com/news/east/2004/05/21/42457.htm
Calif Modest workers' comp rate cuts expected
California's largest workers' compensation insurer will offer only
modest premium cuts in July.
Desert Sun
http://www.thedesertsun.com/news/stories2004/business/20040520224929.shtml
***
CALENDAR
NJ ICLE Handling Employment Law Torts - Monday, June 7, 2004 5:30 pm
to 9:00 pm, Sheraton at Woodbridge Plaza, Islin, NJ
-David Ben-Asher, Esq. Moderator
-Peter L. Frattarelli, Esq
-Donna duBeth Gardiner, Esq.
-Jon L. Gelman, Esq.
-Christopher J. Mills, Esq.
-Glen D. Savits, Esq.
http://www.njicle.com/cgi-bin/njicle?SessionID=18&doc=/Seminars/EmployTort_6-7-04.htm
CMS Regional Conference - Medicare Secondary Payer - Jun 23-25, 2004 -
Atlanta GA
http://www.mediproseminars.com/
SAWCA 56th Annual Convention. June 21-25, 2004. Held at the Inn at
Loretto in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Sponsored by: SAWCA (Southern
Association of Workers' Compensation Administrators), 25 Lazy Eight
Drive, Port Orange, FL 32128 (386/304-1993).
SEAK 24th Annual National Workers' Compensation and Occupational
Medicine Seminar. July 20-22, 2004. Held at the Sheraton Hyannis
Resort in Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Sponsored by SEAK, Inc., P.O. Box
729, Falmouth, MA 02541 (781-261-9972). Website:
http://www.seak.com
AASCIF 2004 American Association of State Compensation Insurance Funds
Conference. August 1-4, 2004. Held in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Additional information: (952/838-4245) or
http://www.aascif.org
AIABC 90th Annual I Convention. August 5-10, 2004. Held at the
Sheraton New York Hotel & Towers in New York City. Sponsored by the
International Association of Industrial Accident Boards and
Commissions (IAIABC). Additional information: IAIABC (608/663-6355).
Website:
http://www.iaiabc.org
GELMAN FOUNDATION, INC. 3rd Annual Nancy Gelman Walk/Run, Sunday
September 19, 2004, "Taking Steps to Cure Breast Cancer" at Rutgers
University, New Brunswick, NJ
http://www.gelmanfoundation.org
***
The workers' compensation mailing list is an informal means to
periodically broadcast passive electronic messages to a large group of
professionals with interest in workers' compensation law. It is
distributed without charge to stimulate academic interest in various
topics including case law, statutory law, administrative memorandum,
proposed regulations and other various issues.
Subscription changes: http://www.gelmans.com/FrontEnd/Email/join.asp
ALL past issues of Workers' Compensation News are archived &
searchable in the Reading Room under "Mail Archives"
http://www.gelmans.com
Jon L. Gelman, Attorney at Law
1450 Valley Rd 1st fl, PO Box 934, Wayne NJ 07474-0934
Voice: (973)696-7900 Fax: (973)696-7988 e-mail: jon@gelmans.com
http://www.gelmans.com
Author: Workers' Compensation Law (Thomson/West)
-TRAUMA INSUFFICIENT TO CAUSE HERNIATION
-COURT PERMITTED TO APPOINT INDEPENDENT PAIN MANAGEMENT EXPERT
-TEMPORARY DISABILITY BENEFITS AWARDED "ON THE PAPERS"
-OCCUPATIONAL BACK HELD NOT COMPENSABLE
-RIGHT TO CONTROL DETERMINES EMPLOYMENT STATUS
-DEVIATION BAR RECOVERY
-SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE – FIBROMYALGIA
-LATEX EXPOSURE ACCEPTED AS A SPECIFIC EVENT
-LATEX EVIDENCE PROVES CAUSAL RELATIONSHIP TO AGGRAVATION OF
DERMATOLOGICAL CONDITION
-SELF-INSURED EMPLOYERS HELD TO DIFFERENT STANDARD
-NJ DIRECTOR ISSUES MEMORANDUM ON COUNSEL FEES OVER $30,000.
For these stories and more visit http://www.gelmans.com
***
FRUSTRATIONS OF 9-11 VICTIMS SEEKING WORKERS' COMPENSATION
Many Who Served on 9/11 Are Still Pressing Fight for Workers'
Compensation
It is in places like Judge Mark Solomon's workers' compensation
courtroom in Brooklyn that lingering questions about the health
consequences of the Sept. 11 attack on the World Trade Center are
fought over day after day.
Workers take seats at one end of the dark wood table in front of Judge
Solomon, their hands jittery, their ankles crossed nervously. Flanked
by lawyers, they struggle to explain how they became sick, and in some
cases unable to work, because of what happened in the days and weeks
after the twin towers collapsed.
NY Times 5.13.04
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/05/13/nyregion/13comp.html?ei=1&en=57dc3cfc20e38c4a&ex=1085446132&pagewanted=print&position=
***
WCRI RELEASES REPORT ON IOWA
Higher maximum weekly benefit levels for injured workers and stable
costs for employers have set Iowa's workers' compensation system apart
from other states. However, the Iowa system was not without areas for
improvement, according to a new study by the Workers Compensation
Research Institute (WCRI).
http://www.wcrinet.org/media_release_5_11_04.html
***
ARTHRITIS
Arthritis is the leading cause of disability in the United States and
its prevalence is expected to increase as the U.S. population ages
http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5318a2.htm
***
JOB LOSSES ERODE UNION MEMBERSHIP
Ongoing layoffs and the anti-union posture of the Bush administration
are slicing union membership. The Bureau of Labor Statistics recently
released new data on union membership for 2003, documenting the
ongoing decline in private sector unionization. The number of workers
who are union members fell by 369,000 to 15.8 million.
http://laborresearch.org/story2.php/347
***
LEAD PAINT
Independent contractor barred from recovery under "exclusion"
provision in policy.
Linda M. Heringer, Appellant, v. American Family Mutual Insurance
Company, et al., Respondent, WD62995, Mo. App. West. Div., 05/04/2004
http://www.osca.state.mo.us/courts/pubopinions.nsf/e53581bdd14e64858625661f004bc8fd/333e6f0be048114e86256e89005e7c0a?OpenDocument
***
WELDING ROD LITIGATION - VERDICT
Pennsylvania Jury Returns Verdict Against Welding Rod Defendants
In just the third known verdict against welding rod manufacturers, a
Pennsylvania jury today awarded former welder Thomas Yencho $500,000
against BOC (Airco) and Lincoln Electric Co., finding that the welding
companies negligently exposed Yencho to defective products that caused
his lung cancer (Thomas J. Yencho and Reena Yencho v. A.W. Chesterton
Inc. et al., No. 2003-0884, Pa. Comm. Pls., Philadelphia Co.).
***
RATES
N.Y. Businesses 'Stunned' by 29% Comp Rate Hike Bid
A recommendation from the New York Compensation Insurance Rating Board
(CIRB) to increase employers' average workers' compensation premiums
by 29 percent is "stunning and frightening," according to Business
Council of New York President Daniel B. Walsh.
Insurance Journal
http://www.insurancejournal.com/news/east/2004/05/21/42457.htm
Calif Modest workers' comp rate cuts expected
California's largest workers' compensation insurer will offer only
modest premium cuts in July.
Desert Sun
http://www.thedesertsun.com/news/stories2004/business/20040520224929.shtml
***
CALENDAR
NJ ICLE Handling Employment Law Torts - Monday, June 7, 2004 5:30 pm
to 9:00 pm, Sheraton at Woodbridge Plaza, Islin, NJ
-David Ben-Asher, Esq. Moderator
-Peter L. Frattarelli, Esq
-Donna duBeth Gardiner, Esq.
-Jon L. Gelman, Esq.
-Christopher J. Mills, Esq.
-Glen D. Savits, Esq.
http://www.njicle.com/cgi-bin/njicle?SessionID=18&doc=/Seminars/EmployTort_6-7-04.htm
CMS Regional Conference - Medicare Secondary Payer - Jun 23-25, 2004 -
Atlanta GA
http://www.mediproseminars.com/
SAWCA 56th Annual Convention. June 21-25, 2004. Held at the Inn at
Loretto in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Sponsored by: SAWCA (Southern
Association of Workers' Compensation Administrators), 25 Lazy Eight
Drive, Port Orange, FL 32128 (386/304-1993).
SEAK 24th Annual National Workers' Compensation and Occupational
Medicine Seminar. July 20-22, 2004. Held at the Sheraton Hyannis
Resort in Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Sponsored by SEAK, Inc., P.O. Box
729, Falmouth, MA 02541 (781-261-9972). Website:
http://www.seak.com
AASCIF 2004 American Association of State Compensation Insurance Funds
Conference. August 1-4, 2004. Held in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Additional information: (952/838-4245) or
http://www.aascif.org
AIABC 90th Annual I Convention. August 5-10, 2004. Held at the
Sheraton New York Hotel & Towers in New York City. Sponsored by the
International Association of Industrial Accident Boards and
Commissions (IAIABC). Additional information: IAIABC (608/663-6355).
Website:
http://www.iaiabc.org
GELMAN FOUNDATION, INC. 3rd Annual Nancy Gelman Walk/Run, Sunday
September 19, 2004, "Taking Steps to Cure Breast Cancer" at Rutgers
University, New Brunswick, NJ
http://www.gelmanfoundation.org
***
The workers' compensation mailing list is an informal means to
periodically broadcast passive electronic messages to a large group of
professionals with interest in workers' compensation law. It is
distributed without charge to stimulate academic interest in various
topics including case law, statutory law, administrative memorandum,
proposed regulations and other various issues.
Subscription changes: http://www.gelmans.com/FrontEnd/Email/join.asp
ALL past issues of Workers' Compensation News are archived &
searchable in the Reading Room under "Mail Archives"
http://www.gelmans.com
Jon L. Gelman, Attorney at Law
1450 Valley Rd 1st fl, PO Box 934, Wayne NJ 07474-0934
Voice: (973)696-7900 Fax: (973)696-7988 e-mail: jon@gelmans.com
http://www.gelmans.com
Author: Workers' Compensation Law (Thomson/West)
