Workers Compensation
| Second Injury Funds |
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| Oftentimes, an employee may be suffering from an injury or disability and then be subsequently injured while working for the employer. Generally, the states have addressed this issue by creating a second injury fund. For the most part, the employer is only responsible for the workers' compensation benefits attributable to the injury incurred while the employee was working for the employer. The second injury fund would pick up where the employer left off by paying the difference between what the employer pays and what the employee is entitled for the total effect of all of his injuries. More... |
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| Insurance Carrier Conflict of Interest |
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| In the arena of workers' compensation and subrogation, the employee may be significantly impacted by the workers' compensation carrier's conflict of interest. The most negative impact would be found in those states denying the injured employee the right to maintain an action against the third party who actually caused his injury. Essentially, the carrier's principle conflict would arise when it is not only the employer's workers' compensation carrier but also the liability carrier for the third party. When this happens, the carrier's interest in paying as little as possible for the claim may be in competition with the employee's right to receive the best recovery possible. More... |
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| Post-Employment Injuries |
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| Though it would seem to be antagonistic to the principle that an injury must arise out of the employment to be compensable, some injuries that occur post-employment are still compensable. Depending on the situation, some activities occurring post-employment are considered by the courts to be normal work activities. For example, injuries incurred while picking up a paycheck, exiting the work premises, and collecting belongings from the employer's premises have all been held to be compensable provided that such activities are undertaken within a reasonable time after the employment relationship has ended. More... |
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| Third Party Defenses to Action |
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| When a third party is sued for his role in causing an employee's injury, he may present various defenses. One such defense is the contributory negligence of the employee or his employer. If the employee shared in causing his injury, the contributory negligence defense could be wielded by the third party and be just as viable as with any other negligence action. When the employer is the employee's subrogee, the defense is as powerful against the employer. Further, in those jurisdictions adhering to the comparative negligence rule, the employer's recovery would be reduced by the amount of fault allocated to the employee. When an employer negligently contributes to the employee's recovery, it is generally held that the contributory negligent defense is ineffectual; as the employer is stepping into the shoes of the employees, its own negligence has no bearing on the "employee's" cause of action. More... |
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| Corporate Executives and Partners |
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| Depending upon an individual's position within a company, he may or may not be covered by workers' compensation. Generally, it is "employees" who may claim workers' compensation benefits. Officers, such as a chief operating officer, president, corporate secretary, or chief financial officer, are usually covered just like regular employees. However, if such an officer gains a controlling ownership interest in the corporation, workers' compensation coverage may be lost. This is because the corporation has essentially become the alter ego of the officer and vice-versa. If workers' compensation coverage was still to be extended to the officer in such a situation, it would be like calling the officer both the employer and the employee. For coverage to be affected, some states require that the officer serve on the corporation's board of directors in addition to owning shares in the corporation. More... |
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