There are 27 million licensed drivers in California, a state known for its sprawling freeways that transverse nearly 800 miles of deserts, valleys, and coastlines. In the workers’ compensation system, insurers are often asked to…
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The Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board has issued a new en banc decision clarifying how applicant’s attorneys may rebut the Permanent Disability Rating Schedule to add PD and get higher monetary values. The commissioners issued a…
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Two of the most popular bills during the 2024 legislative session would benefit local park rangers, and allow applicants to use e-signatures to sign settlement documents. Lawmakers in the state Senate and Assembly advanced bills…
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The Legislature’s failure to fully fund the Employment Development Department (EDD) has led to a situation where countless settlements are being delayed, and the department’s annual revenues are being artificially depressed due to understaffing. The…
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One factor that can delay a workers’ compensation claim is when a QME moves offices or changes med-legal services, and doesn’t tell the parties. This can and has literally added months to a claim. If…
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Two months shy of my 18th Anniversary with Bradford & Barthel, I find myself working remote from a small town in the state of Zacatecas in Mexico, where I spent my summers as a kid….
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Defendants can use a successful good faith personnel action defense to fight compensability of body parts that emanated from the alleged psyche injury, thanks to a 2012 published decision from the 4th District Court of…
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Insurance carriers could be saving millions of dollars by properly using exclusions to bar coverage for staffing agencies, thanks to a published decision from 2019. The 2nd District Court of Appeal’s decision in Travelers Property…
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The Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board threatened to sanction an applicant’s attorney and a hearing representative up to $20,000 apiece for filing petitions for reconsideration with the intent to “disrupt or delay” WCAB proceedings. The board…
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The Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board’s 60-day deadline to act on timely petitions for reconsideration is tolled when an administrative error thwarts the 60-day deadline, according to a new significant panel decision. The Appeals Board determined…
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