In California, workers’ compensation is a sole legal option for injured employees. In effect, this means that someone hurt on the job generally cannot file a personal injury lawsuit directly against their employer. However, California Labor Code Section 4553 allows a worker to seek additional compensation if they were harmed because of “serious and willful […]
Earlier this year, California lawmakers passed Senate Bill 788 (SB-788)—reform legislation that would, among other things, prohibit “discrimination on the basis of sex, gender identity, and sexual orientation” in the determination for permanent disability ratings. If enacted, the law would have had significant implications for workers’ compensation claims. However, the legislation has been vetoed. In […]
According to a report from the Los Angeles Times, the COVID-19 surge driven by the Delta variant started to recede in California in September. Nonetheless, transmission of the COVID-19 virus remains a public health issue in Central California, throughout the United States, and around the globe. With this in mind, California regulators have once again […]
According to a report from Cal Matters, some questions are being raised about the state of California’s long-standing “grand bargain” between employers and employees on the matter of workers’ compensation. The report calls the grand bargain “under siege” in the era of the COVID-19 virus. In this blog post, our Fresno workers’ compensation defense lawyers […]
On September 1, 2021, the California Division of Workers’ Compensation (DWC) announced that in-person hearings are scheduled to return in 30 days. As of October 1, 2021, in-person workers’ compensation hearings will return for the first time since the onset of the COVID-19 outbreak in California in March 2020. In this blog post, our California […]
According to data published by the California Department of Public Health, the Delta variant has quickly become the dominant strain of COVID-19 in the state. It is now responsible for most COVID-19 cases in California. With the Delta variant surge has come another spike in COVID-19-related workers’ compensation claims. Here, our Fresno workers’ compensation defense […]
According to reporting from Fortune Magazine, long-haul COVID-19 is creating some workers’ compensation-related challenges in California and throughout the United States. Below, our California workers’ compensation defense attorneys discuss long-haul COVID-19 and workers’ compensation claims. What is Long-Haul COVID-19? Also referred to simply as “long COVID” and “post-COVID-19 syndrome,” long-haul COVID-19 is a complex condition […]
California requires employers to provide no-fault workers’ compensation benefits to their employees. Any employee who suffers a job-related injury or impairment has the right to file for workers’ compensation benefits without any “pushback” from their employer. Under California Labor Code Section 132(A), “it is the declared policy of this state that there should not be […]
According to a report from My News LA, a Riverside County, California man has agreed to plead guilty in a workers’ compensation fraud claim. Angel Luis Maces, 24 of San Jacinto, was charged after allegedly faking a work-related injury in order to collect thousands in undue workers’ compensation benefits. In this article, our Fresno workers’ […]
An employer may receive notice that a disgruntled former employee has filed a workers’ compensation claim alleging a psychiatric injury after being fired or laid off. However, the employer may not necessarily be liable for the claimed injury thanks to the post-termination defense pursuant to Labor Code Section 3208.3(e). The legislature has specifically enacted a […]
