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Access over workers' compensation decisions, including En Banc, Significant Panel Decisions, and writ-denied cases.

Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision

Claim of Knisell v. Treasure Chest Advertising Co.

Claimant sustained a work-related injury on October 12, 1999. Initially reporting an injury to her left arm, she later experienced neck pain and sought workers' compensation benefits for injury to her left arm, shoulder, and neck. A Workers’ Compensation Law Judge initially barred the neck injury claim due to a failure to provide timely notice to the employer under Workers’ Compensation Law § 18. However, the Workers’ Compensation Board reversed this decision, concluding that the employer was aware of the neck, arm, and shoulder injury on the date of the accident. The employer appealed the Board's reversal. The Appellate Division affirmed the Board's decision, finding that the Board's conclusion of employer awareness was supported by substantial evidence in the record.

Workers' CompensationNotice RequirementCausally Related InjuryNeck InjuryShoulder InjuryArm InjurySubstantial EvidenceAppellate ReviewBoard ReversalEmployer Knowledge
References
1
Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision
May 09, 2006

Claim of Atkinson v. Joseph Baldwin Construction

This is an appeal from decisions of the Workers’ Compensation Board, filed March 29, 2006, and May 9, 2006, which clarified an earlier Board decision from April 23, 2002. The claimant sustained a compensable right shoulder injury in July 1998. Subsequently, the claimant alleged problems with his left shoulder were causally related to the 1998 accident. A Workers’ Compensation Law Judge (WCLJ) initially found no causal relationship for the left shoulder injury, a determination affirmed by the Board in April 2002, although the Board's decision ambiguously mentioned developing the schedule of loss of use for 'both arms.' Following further proceedings, the WCLJ reiterated the disallowance of the left arm claim. The Board then clarified its 2002 decision in 2006, stating that it had affirmed the finding of no causal relationship for the left arm and that only the right arm's schedule loss of use was to be developed. The Appellate Division found that the Board's 2006 decisions effectively amended its 2002 decision. Upon review, the court affirmed the Board’s determination, finding substantial evidence supported the conclusion of no causal relationship for the left arm, giving deference to the Board's credibility assessments and resolution of conflicting medical evidence. The court also rejected the argument that the issue of a consequential left shoulder injury remained open, as the Board's prior decision had disallowed any causally related left arm condition.

Workers' Compensation LawCausal RelationshipLeft Shoulder InjuryRight Shoulder InjuryMedical EvidenceCredibility AssessmentAppellate ReviewBoard ClarificationAmended DecisionSchedule Loss of Use
References
6
Case No. 2020 NY Slip Op 06424 [188 AD3d 1381]
Regular Panel Decision
Nov 12, 2020

Matter of Hluska v. Central New York Psychiatric Ctr.

Claimant Kevin Hluska, who previously received a 13% schedule loss of use (SLU) award for his left arm due to a 2016 shoulder injury, sustained a new work-related injury to his left elbow in 2017. His physician determined this new injury resulted in a 10% SLU of the left arm. The Workers' Compensation Law Judge and the Workers' Compensation Board ruled that claimant was not entitled to a further SLU award for the elbow injury because the previous SLU award for the same arm exceeded the current impairment. The Appellate Division, Third Department, affirmed this decision, citing Workers' Compensation Law § 15 (3), which limits SLU awards for permanent impairments to specific body parts and allows for multiple awards only if for more than one member or parts of more than one member, but the total award for a member is capped.

Schedule Loss of UseSLU AwardLeft Arm InjuryElbow InjuryShoulder InjuryWorkers' Compensation Board DecisionAppellate Division Third DepartmentPermanent ImpairmentPrior AwardSubsequent Injury
References
4
Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision
Jan 12, 1990

Font v. New York City Board of Education

The claimant, who suffered a work-related right arm injury in 1985, sustained a right knee injury in 1987 after being pushed from a bus while en route to a doctor's appointment for the arm. The employer challenged the Workers' Compensation Board's decision that the knee injury was a compensable consequential injury. The court distinguished this case from prior precedent, noting that the injury occurred during necessary travel for treatment of a prior compensable injury. Citing various New York and other state cases, the court concluded that an accidental injury during a trip for medical care related to a work-connected injury is generally compensable. The decision of the Workers' Compensation Board was affirmed.

Workers' CompensationConsequential InjuryMedical Treatment TravelCompensabilityOff-Premise InjuryCausationEmployer LiabilityAppellate ReviewDoctor's VisitInjury En Route
References
12
Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision
Feb 08, 2013

Claim of Pankiw v. Eastman Kodak Co.

The case involves an appeal from a Workers’ Compensation Board decision regarding the shifting of liability to the Special Fund for Reopened Cases under Workers’ Compensation Law § 25-a. Claimant, who suffered work-related injuries in 2004, had a 20% schedule loss of use of his left arm opined in 2007, and a consequential right shoulder injury was added in 2008 with a 30% schedule loss of use, for which the Special Fund became liable. In 2011, claimant sought further action, leading a WCLJ to transfer liability to the Special Fund. However, the Board reversed, finding the case was not "truly closed" because the issue of the left arm injury remained unaddressed. The Appellate Division affirmed the Board's decision, holding that the lack of resolution on the left arm injury meant further proceedings were contemplated, thus preventing the case from being deemed truly closed for liability transfer to the Special Fund.

Workers' CompensationSpecial Fund for Reopened CasesSchedule Loss of UseConsequential InjuryCase ClosureLiability ShiftAppellate DivisionFactual DeterminationCompensation PaymentsUnaddressed Issues
References
5
Case No. 2020 NY Slip Op 06434 [188 AD3d 1403]
Regular Panel Decision
Nov 12, 2020

Matter of Liuni v. Gander Mtn.

Claimant Joseph D. Liuni sustained a left distal bicep tendon rupture in 2007, resulting in a 22.5% schedule loss of use (SLU) award for his left arm. In 2014, he established a workers' compensation claim for his right shoulder, which was later amended in 2016 to include a consequential injury to his left shoulder. A physician determined a 27.5% SLU for the left arm due to the 2016 injury, which, when combined with the prior award, totaled an overall 50% SLU. The Workers' Compensation Board modified a WCLJ's determination, ruling that the bicep and shoulder injuries are not eligible for separate SLU awards as they both fall under awards for the left arm. Consequently, the Board deducted the 2007 22.5% SLU from the 2016 27.5% SLU, resulting in a 5% SLU award for the left arm. The Appellate Division affirmed the Board's decision, emphasizing that Workers' Compensation Law § 15 (3) limits SLU awards to statutorily enumerated members and that separate awards for subparts of a body member would constitute an unauthorized monetary windfall.

Schedule Loss of Use (SLU)Workers' CompensationAppellate DivisionThird DepartmentLeft Arm InjuryBicep Tendon RuptureShoulder InjuryPrior Award DeductionMonetary WindfallStatutory Interpretation
References
5
Case No. CV-23-0868
Regular Panel Decision
Oct 24, 2024

In the Matter of the Claim of Victor Germano

Claimant, Victor Germano, sustained a right shoulder injury in 2015 and a right arm injury in 2019. He was previously awarded a 27.50% schedule loss of use (SLU) for the 2015 injury. Following the 2019 injury to his right elbow and biceps, his treating physician opined a 33.33% SLU of the right arm, in addition to the prior injury. The Workers' Compensation Board affirmed a decision allowing the State Insurance Fund to credit prior payments, thereby offsetting the new SLU award. Citing *Matter of Johnson v City of New York*, the Appellate Division reversed the Board's decision, determining that it lacked substantial evidence, as the claimant's physician clearly distinguished the 33.33% SLU from the prior shoulder injury. The case was remitted to the Board for further proceedings.

Workers' Compensation Board (WCB)Schedule Loss of Use (SLU)Right Arm InjuryShoulder InjuryBiceps Tendon InjuryMedical Evaluation ReportCredit for Prior PaymentsAppellate Division ReviewSubstantial Evidence StandardMaximum Medical Improvement (MMI)
References
8
Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision
Dec 03, 2004

Claim of Scally v. Ravena Coeymans Selkirk Central School District

In this case, a claimant appealed a Workers’ Compensation Board decision regarding apportionment of her workers' compensation award. The claimant, who suffered a work-related left knee injury in 2002, had a pre-existing non-work-related injury to the same knee from 1986. While a WCLJ initially denied apportionment, the Board reversed, directing a 50/50 apportionment based on the premise that the prior injury would have resulted in a schedule loss of use award had it been work-related. The appellate court upheld the Board's determination, deferring to its interpretation that a non-work-related injury leading to a schedule loss of use constitutes a "disability in a compensation sense" for apportionment purposes. This decision was supported by medical expert testimony indicating a schedule loss of use from the prior surgery.

Workers' CompensationApportionmentKnee InjuryNon-work-related InjurySchedule Loss of UsePreexisting ConditionMedical Expert TestimonyBoard InterpretationJudicial ReviewAppellate Decision
References
13
Case No. 2024 NY Slip Op 05259 [231 AD3d 1394]
Regular Panel Decision
Oct 24, 2024

Matter of Germano v. Dynamic Appliances, Inc.

Victor Germano, the claimant, appealed an amended decision by the Workers' Compensation Board regarding a schedule loss of use (SLU) award for a right arm injury sustained in 2019. Germano had a prior SLU award for a 2015 right shoulder injury. The Board affirmed a Workers' Compensation Law Judge's decision, which granted the State Insurance Fund credit for prior payments, reasoning that Germano failed to show his 33.33% SLU of the right arm was solely attributable to the 2019 injury. However, the Appellate Division, Third Department, reversed this decision. Citing Matter of Johnson v City of New York, the Court found that Germano's treating physician had clearly distinguished the 2019 biceps injury's 33.33% SLU as separate from, and in addition to, the prior shoulder injury, thereby making an offset inappropriate. The matter was remitted to the Board for further proceedings consistent with the court's finding.

Workers' CompensationSchedule Loss of Use (SLU)Right Arm InjuryPrior Injury CreditMedical EvidenceAppellate ReviewMaximum Medical Improvement (MMI)Biceps Tendon InjuryShoulder InjuryOffsets
References
8
Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision

Claim of Pellegrino v. Textile Prints Corp.

The claimant appealed a Workers’ Compensation Board decision from 1980, which awarded a 90% scheduled loss of use of his right arm due to a 1968 accident and discharged the Special Fund from liability. The claimant had a prior 1966 work-related arm injury. The Board found that the 90% loss was solely due to the second accident, which involved the hand not injured previously. The court affirmed the Board’s decision, holding that it was supported by substantial medical evidence showing the 1968 injury to the hand, superimposed on the prior injury, resulted in greater overall disability. The court clarified that the Board is not limited to a 100% total schedule loss and can assess each injury individually.

Workers' CompensationSchedule Loss of UseRight Arm InjurySecond AccidentPre-existing ConditionSpecial Disability FundMedical EvidenceAppellate ReviewSubstantial EvidenceConcurrent Injuries
References
5
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