Workers Compensation
| Injured Employee's Recovery Election |
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| Historically, when an employee was injured in the course of his employment, but at the hands of a negligent third party, he was technically able to pursue relief through both the workers' compensation system and a third-party action. Though not able to receive a double recovery, the employee was technically eligible to recover under either theory. However, strict election rules required that he choose which theory of recovery he would pursue, even if his "choice" ultimately left him with no compensation at all. For example, the injured employee elects to proceed with a third-party action, thereby foregoing workers' compensation, but ends up losing the third-party action. More... |
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| Judicial Review of Social Security Administration Action |
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| Aggrieved parties may seek judicial review of final Social Security Administration (SSA) decisions by filing a civil action in federal court. Generally, aggrieved parties must first exhaust their administrative remedies prior to initiating an action for judicial review. In juxtaposition to the administrative exhaustion rule, aggrieved parties may file a mandamus action to compel the performance of a duty owed by the SSA. The appropriateness of mandamus relief is based on considerations of 1) whether the party has any other adequate way to obtain the necessary relief, 2) whether the SSA has a clear duty to act as requested, and 3) whether the party is entitled to have the SSA so act. More... |
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| Adult Consultative Examination Reports |
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| When an adult Social Security Disability Insurance claimant fails to provide, or provides inadequate, medical information to make a "disability" determination, the Social Security Administration (SSA) will request that a consultative examination (CE) be performed. The claimant's treating physician or an independent medical source may perform the CE. When the CE has been completed, a report must be provided to the SSA that meets the minimum requirements specified by the SSA. More... |
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| Uninsured Contractor |
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| Some employers may seek to avoid workers' compensation liability by using contractors to perform work that would normally be performed by the employer's own employees. The reasoning is that employers are responsible only for the workers' compensation coverage of "employees." However, to preclude employers from evading liability by this method, most jurisdictions will impose liability here if the contractor itself is uninsured for workers' compensation. Thus, if an employer utilizes a contractor's employees to do that which the employer's own employees would normally do, and an employee of the contractor is injured, the employer will be responsible for worker's compensation despite the fact that the injured individual is not an "employee" of the employer. These state statutes basically deem the individual an "employee" to further the goals and purpose of workers' compensation. In order to determine whether the contractor is performing work that would normally be done by the employer's own employees, courts will look to the employer's past practices as well as the practices of other employers in the same industry or trade. More... |
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| Social Security Benefits |
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| Though most states require that the injured worker be subject to a contract for hire to receive workers' compensation benefits, such benefits will usually be denied if the contract for hire is illegal. However, the illegality must arise from the nature of the employment and the worker's performance of illegal acts as opposed to the illegality that arises in the making of the contract itself. More... |
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