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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 Murtaugh v. P & D GMC Sales, Inc.

The case involves an appeal from a Workers' Compensation Board decision concerning an award for occupational lung disease. The claimant, an autobody repairer, was found to have a permanent total disability, and the Board held the employer and its insurer fully liable for the benefits. A Workers' Compensation Law Judge ordered the present value of the award to be deposited into the Aggregate Trust Fund, which the Board affirmed. The employer appealed, arguing for a hearing on the award's present value and consideration of the claimant's life expectancy in actuarial computations. However, the Court affirmed the Board's decision, finding the employer's arguments lacked merit and citing Workers' Compensation Law § 27 (5) and prior case law.

Occupational Lung DiseasePermanent Total DisabilityAggregate Trust FundActuarial ComputationWorkers' Compensation BenefitsLiability ApportionmentLife ExpectancyAppellate ReviewStatutory Interpretation
References
3
Case No. ADJ3563222 (SRO 0126894)
Regular
Jul 25, 2013

SHARON KARR-REDDELL vs. CHRISTOPHERSON HOMES, STATE COMPENSATION INSURANCE FUND

The Workers' Compensation Appeals Board (WCAB) reconsidered a decision regarding attorney's fees awarded to applicant's counsel, John Bloom. The WCAB found the original decision erred by calculating fees based on the gross award rather than present value and by not commuting the life pension award for fee payment. The WCAB rescinded the prior order, awarding Mr. Bloom a total of $32,768.18 in attorney's fees based on the present value of both the permanent disability and life pension awards. These fees are to be paid as lump sums commuted from the respective awards through uniform reduction of future payments.

Workers' Compensation Appeals BoardPetition for ReconsiderationPermanent Disability AwardLife Pension AwardAttorney's FeeCommutationPresent ValueUniform Reduction MethodLabor Code Section 4659(c)State Average Weekly Wage
References
0
Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision
Dec 28, 2004

Claim of Lacroix v. Syracuse Executive Air Service, Inc.

This case concerns an appeal by an employer and its workers' compensation carrier from a Workers’ Compensation Board decision, filed December 28, 2004, which directed a claimant’s 75% schedule loss of use award for a left arm injury to be paid in a lump sum. The employer contended that schedule awards are compensation and should be paid periodically and commuted to present value under Workers’ Compensation Law §§ 15, 25, and 27. The court affirmed the Board’s decision, holding that schedule awards are distinct from weekly compensation benefits, are not allocable to a specific period of disability, and therefore do not require periodic payment or commutation to present value. The court relied on established case law, including Matter of Lynch v Board of Educ. of City of N.Y., to support its finding that schedule awards represent a dignitary loss or a cushion against future earning capacity, payable in a lump sum at the Board's discretion.

Workers' Compensation LawSchedule Loss of UseLump Sum PaymentPeriodic PaymentsCommutationDisability BenefitsStatutory InterpretationAppellate ReviewWorkers' Compensation Board DecisionNew York Law
References
5
Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision

Claim of Parkhurst v. United Rentals Aerial Equipment, Inc.

This case involves an appeal by private insurance carriers and employers from three decisions of the Workers’ Compensation Board. The Board directed the carriers to deposit funds into the aggregate trust fund (ATF) for uncapped permanent partial disability (PPD) awards, pursuant to a 2007 amendment to Workers’ Compensation Law § 27 (2). The carriers argued that this mandate was an improper retroactive application of the amendment and that the present value of uncapped awards could not be reliably calculated. The appellate court affirmed the Board's decisions, ruling that the amendment applies prospectively to all PPD awards made after July 1, 2007, regardless of the injury date, and that the Legislature explicitly mandated the use of actuarial tables for present value computations, leaving no discretion to the Board.

Workers' Compensation LawPermanent Partial DisabilityAggregate Trust FundLump-sum paymentStatutory InterpretationRetroactivityActuarial TablesUncapped AwardsAppellate ReviewNew York Law
References
12
Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision
Jun 22, 1999

Claim of Mace v. Owl Wire & Cable Co.

The claimant's husband suffered a heart attack in 1971 and died in 1991, with the death causally related to the 1971 injury. The Workers’ Compensation Board determined that a 3% interest rate, applicable to 1971 accidents under Workers’ Compensation Law § 27 (5), should be used to calculate the present value of the death benefits award to be paid into the Aggregate Trust Fund. The workers’ compensation carrier appealed, contending that the 6% rate, in effect at the time of the decedent's death in 1991, should apply. The court affirmed the Board's decision, holding that the statutory interest rate for calculating the present value of awards to the Aggregate Trust Fund is tied to the date of the original accident, not the subsequent causally-related death. This interpretation aligns with legislative intent and prior Board decisions.

Workers' CompensationAggregate Trust FundInterest Rate CalculationStatutory InterpretationDeath BenefitsDate of AccidentLegislative IntentPresent ValueInsurance Carrier LiabilityAppellate Review
References
16
Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision

Village of Ilion v. County of Herkimer

Justice Abdus-Salaam dissents in part from the majority's decision, which held that a withdrawal payment owed by the plaintiff, Village of Herkimer, to the County for an Abandonment Plan should be discounted to present value. The dissent argues that the withdrawal payment was a lump sum contractual obligation, calculated based on an actuarial estimate of future workers' compensation claims, but represented an immediate present loss to the County when the plaintiff failed to make the payment on the due date of December 31, 2005. Therefore, the dissenting judge contends that the trial court correctly declined to discount the damages award to present value, as it remedied a present loss. The dissent also distinguishes this contract dispute from tort cases where future damages are typically discounted, and affirms the trial court's decision to apply interest from the date of the breach.

breach of contractdamagespresent value discountworkers' compensationlump sum paymentactuarial estimatedissenting opinioncontractual riskinterest calculationNew York Law
References
4
Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision

Kwasnik v. Willo Packing Co.

This case concerns an appeal by a petitioner from an order that vacated a prior judgment which confirmed an arbitrator's award. The petitioner was discharged for alleged theft, but an arbitrator ordered his reinstatement. The respondent sought to overturn this, initially alleging fraud and later presenting 'newly discovered evidence' after the petitioner gave conflicting testimony in a co-worker's trial. Special Term granted the respondent's motion, vacating the prior judgment. The appellate court reversed this decision, holding that newly discovered evidence is not a valid ground for vacating an arbitrator's award under CPLR 7511, and that the evidence presented was either previously available or merely impeaching. The original judgment confirming the arbitrator's award was thus reinstated.

Arbitration AwardVacaturReinstatementCollective BargainingFraud AllegationsNewly Discovered EvidenceCPLR 7511Appellate ReviewWitness CredibilityDischarge for Misconduct
References
3
Case No. ADJ3711842 (ANA 0409880)
Regular
Jun 21, 2013

SEAN GILBERT vs. OAKLAND RAIDERS, ACE USA

This case concerns disputed attorney fees in a workers' compensation claim. The applicant seeks to correct a clerical error in the award regarding the distribution of permanent disability benefits between himself and his counsel. The defendant challenges the calculation of attorney fees, arguing they should be based on the present value of the award, not its full value, and claims improper ex parte communication by a DEU rater. The Appeals Board granted reconsideration, rescinded the prior award, and returned the case for further proceedings to address these issues and ensure proper calculation and distribution of fees.

Workers' Compensation Appeals BoardReconsiderationPermanent Disability IndemnityAttorney's FeesPresent ValueEx Parte CommunicationDEU RaterCross-examinationClerical ErrorLife Pension
References
0
Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision

Atlantic Casualty Insurance v. Value Waterproofing, Inc.

Atlantic Casualty Insurance Company sought a declaratory judgment that it had no duty to defend or indemnify Value Waterproofing, Inc. in an underlying breach of contract and negligence lawsuit. Value counterclaimed, requesting a declaration that Atlantic Casualty was required to defend and indemnify. The court granted Atlantic Casualty's request, finding that Value failed to provide timely notice of the claim, thereby prejudicing Atlantic Casualty's investigation capabilities. Additionally, the court ruled that Value's work on a commercial property was not covered by its residential-only roofing insurance policy, further justifying the denial of coverage.

Insurance disputeBreach of contractNegligenceDeclaratory judgmentTimely noticeCoverage exclusionCommercial General LiabilityResidential roofingPolicy interpretationPrejudice
References
46
Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision

In re the Arbitration between Klikocki & New York Department of Corrections

This appeal concerns the vacatur of an arbitration award. The petitioner sought to overturn the award, alleging that the respondent fraudulently destroyed a crucial key log that would have supported the petitioner's claim of a work-related injury. The arbitration stemmed from the petitioner's discharge for misconduct, specifically for filing a workers' compensation claim for an injury purportedly sustained at work but alleged by a former girlfriend to have occurred while playing frisbee. The court found insufficient clear and convincing evidence of fraud, noting the key log's destruction was part of a routine record disposal and not maliciously intended. Furthermore, the court deemed the log's probative value limited regarding the central issue of the injury's true origin. Consequently, the Supreme Court's order vacating the arbitration award was reversed, the petition dismissed, and the original arbitration award confirmed.

FraudArbitration AwardVacaturWorkers' Compensation ClaimEvidence DestructionCPLR 7511MisconductAppealDue DiligenceKey Log
References
2
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