Matter of Jacobi is a case that drastically altered how change in conditions for classified claimants are handled. If you recall, for a period of time once a claimant was classified their rate didn’t change to total – even if their doctor said they were totally disabled, or had a surgery. We all rejoiced, but… Read More
Recently, we have been successful in getting claims dismissed for failing to comply with WCL Section 18. As part and parcel of those determinations, the Board has to make a determination that the employer was prejudiced by the late notice. It is the claimant’s burden to demonstrate that the employer was not prejudiced. However, in… Read More
What do you do when a claimant makes a claim for both noise-induced hearing loss AND traumatic hearing loss, under the theory of, “well, it’s gotta be one of those two,” and your Independent Medical Examination on causal relationship’s been precluded under §137? The answer is to get the both disallowed. These were, of course… Read More
This was a controverted claim by an employee for an alleged injury to the left knee. The issue for litigation which ultimately led to a disallowance of the claim was causal relationship. The claimant claimed to have injured his knee while working. The claimant did not seek treatment until 2 years following the alleged accident,… Read More
In a Reserved Decision, Judge Balogun ruled that a claimant was not entitled to multiple SLU awards or loss of wage earning capacity as there was no permanency or schedule assignable for the injuries sustained. The claimant suffered work injuries to the neck, back and bilateral shoulders when they were rear-ended. The claimant had minimal… Read More