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

Case No. 2024-40-5803
Regular Panel Decision
Sep 09, 2025

Reed, Kimberly v. Critical Nurse Staffing, LLC

In this interlocutory appeal, the Tennessee Workers' Compensation Appeals Board reviewed a trial court's order concerning an employee's work-related injuries. The employee, Kimberly Reed, reported a left arm/shoulder injury and later sought treatment for head/face/TMJ complaints. The trial court had ordered the employer, Critical Nurse Staffing, LLC, to provide a second opinion for shoulder surgery and a panel of otolaryngologists for the TMJ condition. The Appeals Board affirmed the order for a second opinion on shoulder surgery, finding the authorized physician's reports constituted a recommendation for surgery. However, the Board reversed the order for the otolaryngologist panel, concluding there was insufficient evidence at this stage to prove the TMJ condition was causally related to the work injury. The case was remanded for further proceedings.

Workers' Compensation AppealSecond Opinion Medical ReviewShoulder InjuryRotator Cuff TearTemporomandibular Joint DisorderCausation of InjuryMedical Treatment AuthorizationInterlocutory AppealEvidentiary StandardProcedural Compliance
References
10
Case No. NO. 01-13-00108-CV
Regular Panel Decision
Sep 23, 2014

Iris Gonzalez v. Diversicare Leasing Corp D/B/A Afton Oaks Nursing Care Center A/K/A Afton Oaks Nursing and Rehab Center Diversicare Afton Oaks, LLC.

Iris Gonzalez, an employee at a nursing home, sued her employer, Afton Oaks, for personal injuries sustained after tripping over crates on an employee pathway. The trial court dismissed her lawsuit for failure to file an expert report under the Texas Medical Liability Act, categorizing it as a health care liability claim. Gonzalez appealed, arguing it was an ordinary negligence claim unrelated to health care. The Court of Appeals, relying on a recent decision in Williams v. Riverside General Hospital, Inc., held that a 'garden-variety slip-and-fall claim that is completely untethered from the provision of health care' does not constitute a health care liability safety claim. Therefore, the appellate court reversed the trial court's judgment and remanded the case for further proceedings.

Slip and FallOrdinary NegligenceTexas Medical Liability ActHealth Care Liability ClaimEmployer LiabilityNursing HomePremises LiabilityWorkers' CompensationExpert ReportAppellate Procedure
References
4
Case No. ADJ8990294
Regular
Oct 26, 2015

VELMA CRUZ vs. TRINITY NURSING HOME MANAGEMENT/SERRANO SOUTH CONVALESCENT HOSPITAL, SEABRIGHT INSURANCE COMPANY

This case involves an applicant seeking workers' compensation for injuries allegedly sustained as a certified nursing assistant. The Workers' Compensation Appeals Board denied reconsideration of the administrative law judge's (WCJ) decision that found no industrial injury, adopting the WCJ's reasoning that the applicant failed to meet her burden of proof regarding causation. While one commissioner dissented, advocating for further record development due to credible testimony of injury mechanisms and potentially insufficient medical evidence, the majority upheld the denial. The majority also noted that, separate from the causation issue, a post-termination provision might also bar the claim.

WCABVelma CruzTrinity Nursing HomeSerrano South ConvalescentSeabright InsuranceADJ8990294Petition for ReconsiderationAdministrative Law JudgeFindings and OrderCertified Nursing Assistant
References
2
Case No. 07-08-0305-CV
Regular Panel Decision
Jun 02, 2009

Carrie Welch v. Nightingale Nurses, LLC

Carrie Welch, an EEG technician, sued Nightingale Nurses, LLC, her employer, for retaliatory discharge after she filed a worker's compensation claim for an on-the-job injury. Welch's employment contract with Nightingale Nurses, a Florida company, included a forum selection clause requiring litigation in Palm Beach County, Florida. The trial court granted Nightingale's motion to dismiss based on this clause, prompting Welch's appeal. Welch argued the clause was unenforceable due to public interest favoring a Texas forum and because it would be unreasonable and unjust. The Court of Appeals affirmed the trial court's dismissal, finding Welch failed to demonstrate any exceptions to the enforceability of the forum selection clause.

Forum Selection ClauseRetaliatory DischargeWorker's Compensation ClaimEmployment ContractTexas Labor CodeMotion to DismissAppellate ReviewAbuse of DiscretionContract EnforcementFlorida Venue
References
12
Case No. 2018 NY Slip Op 04542 [162 AD3d 878]
Regular Panel Decision
Jun 20, 2018

Lorde v. Margaret Tietz Nursing & Rehabilitation Ctr.

Thomas Lorde, a carpenter, was injured after falling from an inverted bucket while installing sheetrock at premises owned by Margaret Tietz Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. Lorde filed an action for personal injuries, alleging common-law negligence and violations of Labor Law §§ 200, 240 (1), and 241 (6), and moved for summary judgment on the Labor Law § 240 (1) claim. The Supreme Court, Kings County, denied his motion for summary judgment on the issue of liability. Lorde appealed this decision to the Appellate Division, Second Department. The Appellate Division affirmed the Supreme Court's order, concluding that Lorde failed to establish his prima facie entitlement to judgment as a matter of law, as his testimony raised triable issues of fact regarding the availability of safety devices and whether his own negligence was the sole proximate cause of his injury.

Personal InjurySummary JudgmentLabor Law § 240(1)Elevated Work SiteSafety DevicesProximate CauseWorker NegligenceAppellate ReviewConstruction AccidentFalling Accident
References
10
Case No. 07-02-0011-CV
Regular Panel Decision
May 19, 2003

Cresthaven Nursing Residence v. Freeman

This case involves an appeal in a health care liability claim where the appellees, daughters of Wanda Granger, sued Cresthaven Nursing Residence, Cantex Healthcare Centers, and its general partners for negligence that allegedly resulted in Granger's injury and death. A jury awarded $9 million, which was subject to a statutory damage cap. The appellate court initially found prejudgment interest was not subject to the cap and suggested remittiturs for excessive damages. However, on rehearing, the court modified its decision, aligning with a new Supreme Court ruling that prejudgment interest is included in the damage cap, and affirmed the judgment with an adjusted cap of $1,413,008.13. Key issues included the application of the damage cap, prejudgment interest calculation, spoliation instruction, and expert witness qualification.

Health Care LiabilityMedical MalpracticeNursing Home NegligenceWrongful DeathSurvival ActionDamage CapPrejudgment InterestSpoliation of EvidenceExpert Witness QualificationExcessive Damages
References
39
Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision

Yeldell v. Holiday Hills Retirement and Nursing Center, Inc.

Bertha Yeldell, a vocational nurse for non-subscriber employer Holiday Hills Retirement and Nursing Center, Inc., suffered second and third-degree burns after a coffee urn overturned while she was making a personal telephone call at her duty station. The trial court awarded damages to Yeldell, finding her injuries to be in the course and scope of employment. The court of appeals reversed this judgment. The Supreme Court of Texas reversed the court of appeals, affirming the trial court's decision, ruling that personal telephone calls, like other acts for comfort, can be incidental to employment and thus compensable under the Workers’ Compensation Act. Additionally, the Supreme Court upheld the trial court's exclusion of a witness not disclosed during discovery, stating Holiday Hills failed to supplement interrogatory answers as required by Rule 168(7) of the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure.

Workers' CompensationCourse of EmploymentScope of EmploymentPersonal ActTelephone CallDiscovery RulesInterrogatory SanctionsWitness ExclusionTexas Civil ProcedureNon-subscriber Employer
References
4
Case No. 10-93-224-CV
Regular Panel Decision
May 18, 1994

Subsequent Injury Fund of the State of Texas (Formerly the Second Injury Fund) v. Larry Milligan

The Subsequent Injury Fund appeals a judgment awarding Larry Milligan lifetime benefits for injuries sustained at work. Milligan suffered two ankle injuries in 1987 and a third in 1989, leading to the total loss of use of both feet. He sued the Fund for lifetime benefits after settling with the workers' compensation carrier. The jury found permanent, total loss of use of both feet. The Fund challenged its statutory liability for lifetime benefits and the court's refusal to submit a jury question on total and permanent incapacity. The appellate court affirmed, finding the first issue unpreserved and the second resolved by a statutory conclusive presumption of total and permanent incapacity for the loss of both feet.

Workers' Compensation LawSubsequent Injury FundLifetime BenefitsTotal Permanent IncapacityAnkle InjuriesStatutory InterpretationAppellate ReviewJury InstructionsConclusive PresumptionOccupational Injuries
References
6
Case No. No. 08-07-00346-CV
Regular Panel Decision
Feb 24, 2010

W.C. LaRock, D.C., P.C. D/B/A Auto & Work Injury Clinic and Maria Del Carmen Gallardo/Rosemary Smith v. Rosemary Smith/W.C. LaRock, D.C., P.C. D/B/A Auto & Work Injury Clinic and Maria Del Carmen Gallardo

Rosemary Smith, an El Paso Police Officer, sued W.C. LaRock, D.C., P.C., d/b/a Auto & Work Injury Clinic, and its employee Maria Gallardo, alleging negligence after a physical therapy session aggravated a prior back injury. The City of El Paso, Smith's worker's compensation subrogee, joined as a plaintiff. The jury found Gallardo negligent, awarding Smith $488,000, which the trial court reduced to $339,983.58. Both parties appealed. The Court of Appeals found the expert testimony on causation insufficient to establish that Gallardo's therapy proximately caused Smith's reherniation, as the expert only stated it was "possible." The court reversed the trial court's judgment.

Medical MalpracticeNegligenceCausationExpert TestimonyPhysical TherapyHerniated DiscSpinal SurgeryProximate CauseLegal SufficiencyAppeal
References
33
Case No. 04-06-00417-CV
Regular Panel Decision
Jun 25, 2008

Sylvia Casas, Ind. Substantively Consolidated Bankruptcy Estates of Fountain View, Inc. as Successor to Summit Care Corporation, Summit Care Texas, L.P. D/B/A Comanche Trail Nursing Center and Summit Care Management Texas and Robert Gundling, Ind. v. Rosamarie Paradez, as the Administrator and Heir at Law of the Estate of Tranquilino Mendoza

This case involves a medical malpractice survival action initiated by Rosamarie Paradez, daughter of the deceased Tranquilino Mendoza, against Sylvia Casas, Robert Gundling, and the consolidated bankruptcy estates of Fountain View, Inc. (successor to Summit Care Corp. and Summit Care Texas, L.P., operators of Comanche Trail Nursing Center). Mendoza, an 81-year-old nursing home resident, suffered severe injuries after being beaten by a violent roommate, allegedly due to the appellants' negligence. The appellants challenged various aspects of the trial court's judgment, including the denial of new trial motions, sufficiency of damages, excessive awards, and the application of damages caps. The appellate court affirmed the trial court's judgment, upholding the damages awarded for pain, mental anguish, and physical impairment, and finding no error in the application of the damages cap or the finding of negligence against Gundling.

Medical MalpracticeNursing Home NegligencePersonal InjurySurvival ActionAppellate ReviewJury ArgumentDamages CapFactual SufficiencyMental AnguishPhysical Impairment
References
35
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