No fees on medical benefits because insurer authorized surgery before Court adjudicated… no fees on 20% increase for unreasonable delay… Sandler. [Read more…]
Bonus/AWW, offsets, overpayments, reconsideration
Reconsideration of rulings as to bonus/AWW, offsets, overpayments denied… Shea. [Read more…]
$1,275,000 settlement, MPC/NWE comp claims
SETTLEMENT: $1,275,000 by MPC’s insurer following defense verdict and order for new work comp bad faith trial based on juror misconduct, in addition to previous $2.5 million from co-Defendant NWE and $200,000 from adjuster, in addition to [Read more…]
AWW, bonus, vacation pay, auxiliary SSD offset
Good cause to calculate AWW under §123(3)(b), annual bonus included, vacation pay, employer 401(k) contributions excluded… 123 not proven unconstitutional, no penalty… insurer not estopped from offsetting son’s auxiliary SSD and recouping [Read more…]
Discovery
Insurer who claims delay in answering interrogatories due to change of adjusting companies ordered to supplement answers to 4 interrogatories within 10 days… request for information as to complaints in unrelated claims in attempt to build fee/penalty case irrelevant to instant claim, [Read more…]
Jury, work comp bad faith mistrial, misconduct
JURY: Mistrial/new trial granted following class action work comp bad faith defense verdict due to extraneous information during deliberations (employee handbook, information that class member had other comp claims) which prejudiced Plaintiffs… Krueger. [Read more…]
Defense verdict, work comp bad faith, class action
VERDICT: Defense, work comp bad faith (interest damages. emotional distress, punitives), class action. [Read more…]
Work comp bad faith, class certification
WORK COMP BAD FAITH/CLASS CERTIFICATION: Malice/punitives claims not fact intensive as to individual class members (unlike fraud claims), properly included in class action… class properly defined… Krueger affirmed. [Read more…]
Discovery, retaliatory, IME physician
Insurer’s retaliatory discovery denied in penalty case as to whether it was unreasonable in “un-accepting” and later re-accepting claim… Claimant’s discovery as to IME doctor limited to Fjelstad parameters… Shea. [Read more…]
Vacation pay/employer 401(k) “wages,”
Vacation pay accrued pre-injury but paid post-injury, employer 401(k) contributions, not “wages” under §123… §123 constitutional challenge rejected… penalty may be imposed for failure to pay Lockhart lien… sanctions against Claimant denied… Shea. [Read more…]