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Case Law Database

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

Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision

Claim of Salters v. Town of Woodstock

A claimant appealed a Workers’ Compensation Board decision from January 24, 1997, which denied her claim for death benefits. Her husband, the Chief of Police for the Town of Woodstock, suffered an intracerebral hemorrhage during an executive session in April 1992 and died approximately 20 months later from a myocardial infarction and acute respiratory failure. While the decedent's physician attributed the hemorrhage to work stress, the employer’s expert and an impartial specialist found no causal link between the work stress and the hemorrhage. The Board credited these expert opinions, finding no causal relationship, and denied the claim. The Appellate Division affirmed the Board's decision, concluding that there was substantial evidence to rebut any presumption under Workers’ Compensation Law § 21.

Intracerebral HemorrhageCausal RelationshipWork Stress InjuryDeath Benefits ClaimExpert Medical OpinionSubstantial EvidenceAppellate AffirmationPolice EmploymentWorkers' Compensation Law § 21Medical Causation
References
3
Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision
Oct 11, 1978

Claim of Neblett v. Salvation Army

The case involves an appeal from a Workers’ Compensation Board decision regarding a death benefits claim. Claimant’s decedent, a 53-year-old porter, died from a cerebral hemorrhage suffered at work on May 5, 1973. His widow filed for death benefits, which the Board approved, invoking the presumption under Workers’ Compensation Law section 21 for unwitnessed accidents arising out of and in the course of employment. The appellate court affirmed the Board’s decision, noting the concession that death resulted from a cerebral hemorrhage at work and the absence of evidence suggesting another cause, thus upholding the application of the Section 21 presumption.

Workers' CompensationDeath BenefitsCerebral HemorrhageArising Out of EmploymentCourse of EmploymentPresumptionUnwitnessed AccidentAppellate ReviewEmployer LiabilitySelf-Insured
References
2
Case No. ADJ7932198
Regular
Aug 06, 2019

JOHN GINN vs. LANCASTER SCHOOL DISTRICT

This case involves a worker who sustained a low back injury, followed by a stroke, hemorrhage, and paralysis. The defendant school district contested the finding that the stroke was a compensable consequence of the initial injury, arguing the medical evidence was flawed. The Appeals Board denied the defendant's petition for reconsideration, upholding the finding of a 100% permanent disability award for the applicant. The Board affirmed reliance on physicians not explicitly designated as QMEs, as the applicant had to self-procure treatment due to the defendant's initial denial of liability for the stroke.

Compensable consequence injuryIschemic strokeIntercerebral hemorrhageHemiparalysisCognitive speech impairmentPermissibly self-insuredKeenan & AssociatesCalPERS salary letterMutual mistake of factPrimary treating physician
References
1
Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision

Claim of Gordon v. Paul

A traveling salesman suffered a stroke in September 1987 due to a demanding work schedule, leading him to file a workers' compensation claim. The Workers' Compensation Board determined the stroke was causally related to his employment and awarded benefits. The employer and its insurance carrier appealed the decision. While the court found Workers' Compensation Law § 21 inapplicable, it affirmed the Board's ruling, concluding it was supported by substantial medical evidence. Expert testimony indicated that the claimant's pre-existing conditions, coupled with work-related stress, likely contributed to his cerebral hemorrhage.

StrokeCausally Related DisabilityWorkers' Compensation BenefitsTraveling SalesmanHeavy Work ScheduleCerebral HemorrhageCardiovascular DiseaseHypertensionWork-Related StressSubstantial Evidence
References
1
Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision
Apr 09, 1981

Claim of Yarter v. S. R. Beltrone, Inc.

A carpenter died from a cerebral hemorrhage after being found unconscious next to a ladder at work, an incident unwitnessed but occurring shortly after he was seen working on the ladder. The Workers' Compensation Board ruled it an industrial accident and applied the presumption of Section 21 of the Workers’ Compensation Law. The employer and its insurance carrier appealed, challenging the application of the presumption and the sufficiency of the medical evidence regarding causation. The appellate court affirmed the Board's decision, holding that the presumption was properly applied given the unwitnessed fall at work, and that the medical testimony supported the finding of causation, thereby upholding the Board's determination that the presumption had not been rebutted.

Cerebral HemorrhageIndustrial AccidentUnwitnessed FallWorkers' Compensation Law Section 21Presumption of CompensabilityMedical CausationAppellate ReviewEmployer LiabilityInsurance Carrier LiabilityWorkers' Compensation Board Decision
References
9
Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision
Jun 14, 2007

Williams v. Colgate University

Claimant, a custodian for Colgate University, sustained a head injury in December 2005 after striking his head on a metal pipe, leading to a medullary hemorrhage. His application for workers' compensation was controverted by the employer. Conflicting medical opinions from neurologists Anthony Bragdon (for claimant) and Robert Knapp (for employer) were presented regarding the causal relationship of the injury to the workplace accident. The Workers’ Compensation Law Judge credited Bragdon's testimony, finding a causal relationship, a decision upheld by the Workers’ Compensation Board. The employer's appeal to the Appellate Division was denied, with the Court affirming the Board's decision due to ample supporting evidence.

Causal RelationshipHead InjuryMedullary HemorrhageIndependent Medical Examination (IME)Neurologist Expert TestimonyConflicting Medical EvidenceWorkers' Compensation Board AppealCredibility FindingWorkplace AccidentBrain Injury
References
9
Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision

Claim of Sicker v. Karl Schroll & Associates, Inc.

This case concerns an appeal challenging a decision and award of death benefits. The decedent, a 63-year-old steamship worker, sought medical attention for painful buttocks, attributing it to a work-related incident. Dr. Flynn initially diagnosed a hematoma, leading to operative procedures, but the decedent's condition deteriorated, and he died of diffuse lymphosarcoma. An impartial specialist later determined no causal link between the alleged trauma and death, and it was conceded that the 'hematoma' was cancerous hemorrhaging, not accident-related. Therefore, the appellate court reversed the board's decision and dismissed the claim, finding the operative procedures were based on a mistaken diagnosis and not necessitated by employment.

Death BenefitsCausal RelationshipMistaken DiagnosisLymphosarcomaWorkers' Compensation AppealMedical TestimonyAutopsy FindingsEmployment-Related InjuryOperative ProceduresPre-existing Condition
References
0
Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision
Dec 23, 1993

Claim of Kroeger v. New York State Workers' Compensation Board

This case involves an appeal from a Workers’ Compensation Board decision awarding death benefits to a claimant, the widow of a Workers' Compensation Board Commissioner. The decedent collapsed and died from an intercranial pontine hemorrhage after work. The Board found his death causally related to job stress, despite his pre-existing conditions (obesity, hypertension, arteriosclerosis). The employer and its insurance carrier appealed, arguing a lack of substantial evidence. The court noted conflicting medical testimony regarding the causal link between work stress and death but upheld the Board’s prerogative to weigh such evidence. Ultimately, the Board's decision to award death benefits was affirmed.

Workers' CompensationCausal RelationshipJob StressIntercranial Pontine HemorrhageMedical Testimony ConflictPre-existing ConditionsDeath BenefitsAppellate ReviewSubstantial EvidenceBoard Decision
References
2
Case No. CV-23-0221
Regular Panel Decision
Apr 25, 2024

In the Matter of the Claim of Annette Bosque

Annette Bosque, a home health care aide, sustained severe injuries, including a subarachnoid hemorrhage and spinal cord injuries, after falling in a patient's home. She filed a claim for workers' compensation benefits, which the employer, Prime Support Inc., and its carrier controverted. A Workers' Compensation Law Judge (WCLJ) found the injuries to be work-related and awarded benefits. The carrier appealed to the Workers' Compensation Board, which affirmed the WCLJ's decision. On further appeal to the Supreme Court, Appellate Division, Third Judicial Department, the carrier's arguments were rejected. The Court affirmed the Board's decision, finding it supported by substantial evidence and relying on the statutory presumption of compensability for unwitnessed or unexplained accidents occurring during the course of employment.

Workers' Compensation BenefitsAccidental InjuryCourse of EmploymentArising Out of EmploymentWorkers' Compensation Law § 21(1)Presumption of CompensabilityUnwitnessed AccidentEmployer's DefensesPrehearing Conference StatementSubstantial Evidence Review
References
12
Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision

Claim of Garcia v. Brassiere Restaurant

A claimant with a known pre-existing brain condition suffered a lacerated scalp at work. Subsequently, the claimant developed cerebellar degeneration and became permanently and totally disabled. An impartial neurologist determined that while the claimant experienced minor head and neck pain causally related to the accident, the severe disability stemmed from a progressive degenerative disease and a posttraumatic seizure disorder, neither of which were found to be causally related to the work accident or exacerbated by the pre-existing condition. The Workers’ Compensation Board relieved the Special Fund from liability, concluding that the pre-existing impairment did not materially and substantially increase the permanent disability beyond what the subsequent injury alone would have caused. The appellate court affirmed the Board's decision, citing substantial evidence.

Workers' CompensationSpecial FundPermanent Total DisabilityPre-existing ConditionCausal RelationshipCerebellar DegenerationHead InjuryMedical OpinionImpartial Medical ExaminerAppellate Review
References
2
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