CompFox Logo
AboutWorkflowFeaturesPricingCase LawInsights

Updated Daily

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 Wallace v. Oswego Wire, Inc.

The Workers' Compensation Board affirmed a decision finding a claimant's left hand injury consequentially related to a prior right knee injury. While recuperating from a work-related right knee injury, the claimant's knee gave out, causing him to cut his left hand with a table saw. The employer and its carrier appealed, arguing the claimant's conduct was an intervening act. The court, led by Peters, J., affirmed the Board’s determination, finding substantial evidence that using the table saw, despite the knee condition, was not an unreasonable intervening cause, as prior buckling was infrequent. Judges Crew III, Carpinello, Lahtinen, and Kane concurred with the decision.

Workers' CompensationConsequential InjuryIntervening CauseRight Knee InjuryLeft Hand InjuryTable Saw AccidentCausationAppellate ReviewBoard DecisionFactual Issue
References
4
Case No. 2023 NY Slip Op 03890
Regular Panel Decision
Jul 20, 2023

Matter of Perry v. DOCCS Clinton Corr. Facility

Claimant Robert Perry, a correction officer, initially filed a workers' compensation claim in January 2017 for injuries to his left hand and wrist. This claim was established, leading to an award for schedule loss of use of his left hand in September 2019. Subsequently, in May 2020, Perry was diagnosed with left elbow epicondylitis, which he sought to include as a causally-related injury to his existing claim. The employer and carrier argued the amendment was untimely under Workers' Compensation Law § 28. While a Workers' Compensation Law Judge initially permitted the amendment, the Workers' Compensation Board reversed, deeming the left elbow claim time-barred due to not being filed within two years of the original accident. The Appellate Division, Third Department, affirmed the Board's decision, concluding that the Board properly found no evidence of an injury to the left elbow in claimant's medical records prior to May 2020, and that the Board, as the sole arbiter of credibility, was free to prioritize medical records over claimant's conflicting testimony regarding earlier elbow pain, thus upholding the denial of the claim and the subsequent denial of reconsideration.

Workers' Compensation LawTimeliness of ClaimLeft Elbow InjuryMedical MisdiagnosisSchedule Loss of UseWorkers' Compensation Board DecisionAppellate DivisionCorrectional OfficerClaim AmendmentStatute of Limitations
References
6
Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision
Jul 18, 1975

the Claim of Forest Westfall v. Linesville Construction Co.

The claimant, a 44-year-old pipe line construction worker, sustained a left eye injury in 1971, leading to enucleation. Twenty years prior, he had lost four fingers of his left hand due to an injury in Ohio. The Workmen's Compensation Board found a 95% loss of use of the left hand, concluding he was not totally and permanently disabled under section 15 (subd 8, par [c]) of the Workmen’s Compensation Law, as he retained full thumb motion. Conflicting medical testimonies regarding the extent of his hand disability were presented. The Appellate Division affirmed the board's decision, citing that the board's conclusion was supported by substantial evidence and that determining conflicting medical testimony is within the board's purview.

Workers' CompensationPermanent DisabilityHand InjuryEye InjuryMedical TestimonyAppellate ReviewSubstantial EvidenceLoss of UsePrior InjuryDisability Percentage
References
4
Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision

Claim of Feliciano v. New York City Health & Hospitals Co.

Claimant sought workers' compensation benefits for bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome. Initially, a Workers' Compensation Law Judge ruled the left hand claim time-barred by Workers' Compensation Law § 28 and established August 28, 2006, as the disability date for the right hand. On appeal, the Workers' Compensation Board affirmed the right hand's disability date but, on its own motion, set December 2003 as the disability date for the left hand, thereby confirming the left hand claim was untimely. The claimant appealed, arguing against two disability dates for a single claim. The court affirmed the Board's decision, finding substantial evidence supported treating the hand injuries as discrete occupational diseases with separate disablement dates and upheld the time-bar for the left hand claim.

Workers' CompensationOccupational DiseaseCarpal Tunnel SyndromeTime-barred ClaimDate of DisablementBilateral InjuriesAppellate ReviewWorkers' Compensation BoardJudicial ReviewStatute of Limitations
References
6
Case No. ADJ18492736
Regular
Sep 30, 2025

MARIA HERNANDEZ vs. VALLARTA FOOD ENTERPRISES, INC.; SAFETY NATIONAL CASUALTY CORPORATION

The Workers' Compensation Appeals Board reviewed a petition for reconsideration filed by Safety National Insurance, challenging a WCJ's finding that Maria Hernandez sustained injury to multiple body parts. The Board found the treating physician's report lacked substantial medical evidence due to inadequate records and a flawed job description. Additionally, the Qualified Medical Evaluator's (QME) reports were incomplete and inconsistent regarding all body parts except the left hand. Consequently, the Board granted reconsideration, rescinded the original decision, and substituted new findings, determining that Hernandez sustained a cumulative injury only to her left hand while deferring the issue of injury to other body parts for further development of the record.

WCABPetition for ReconsiderationFindings of Fact and Ordersubstantial medical evidenceQualified Medical Evaluator (QME)cumulative traumabilateral shoulderswristshandsleft hand injury
References
19
Case No. 534849
Regular Panel Decision
Jul 20, 2023

In the Matter of the Claim of Robert Perry

Claimant Robert Perry, a correction officer, appealed two decisions from the Workers' Compensation Board. Initially, Perry filed a claim in January 2017 for left hand and wrist injuries, which was established. He later sought to amend his claim in 2020 to include a causally-related left elbow injury, diagnosed in May 2020 and surgically repaired in February 2021. The Board, reversing a WCLJ decision, found the claim for the elbow injury time-barred under Workers' Compensation Law § 28, as it was filed more than two years after the original accident. The Board also denied Perry's application for reconsideration. The Appellate Division affirmed the Board's decisions, ruling that the claim for the left elbow injury was indeed time-barred and that the Board did not abuse its discretion in denying reconsideration, having properly weighed the evidence including conflicting medical records and claimant's testimony.

Workers' Compensation Law § 28Statute of LimitationsTimely FilingClaim AmendmentLeft Elbow InjuryMedical MisdiagnosisWorkers' Compensation BoardAppellate ReviewFactual IssueSubstantial Evidence
References
6
Case No. ADJ11756808
Regular
Apr 04, 2023

JASON KOLB vs. TAMPA BAY DEVIL RAYS, TRAVELERS INDEMNITY COMPANY

This case involves a professional athlete claiming cumulative industrial injury to multiple body parts. The Appeals Board granted reconsideration, finding that the initial judge erred by solely awarding benefits for the left shoulder, despite unanimous medical evidence of injury to other areas. The Board adopted the opinions of Dr. Kim, finding industrial injury to the cervical spine, lumbar spine, right shoulder, left elbow, wrists, hands, fingers, hips, and left knee. Consequently, the applicant's permanent disability award was increased from 3% to 41%.

ADJ11756808Petition for ReconsiderationFindings and AwardPermanent DisabilityIndustrial InjuryCervical SpineLumbar SpineRight ShoulderLeft ElbowWrists
References
4
Case No. 534023
Regular Panel Decision
Jun 23, 2022

In the Matter of the Claim of Brenda Sanchez

Brenda Sanchez, a station agent, appealed a Workers' Compensation Board (WCB) decision denying her claim for benefits for repetitive stress injuries to her neck, back, left shoulder, left hip, and left hand. Initially, the claim was disallowed as time-barred, but the Appellate Division remitted the matter. Upon remittal, the WCB found that the injuries were not causally related to her employment, discrediting the opinion of her treating physician, Stephen Roberts. The Appellate Division affirmed the WCB's decision, concluding that substantial evidence supported the finding that Sanchez failed to establish a recognizable link between her injuries and a distinctive feature of her occupation, specifically the lifting of heavy coin bags, due to insufficient evidence regarding frequency and a clear causal mechanism.

Occupational diseaseRepetitive stress injuryCausationMedical evidenceSubstantial evidenceStation agentWorkers' compensation benefitsTime-barred claimBoard decisionAppellate review
References
8
Case No. 534614
Regular Panel Decision
Feb 16, 2023

In the Matter of the Claim of Joseph Marcellino

The case involves an appeal from a Workers' Compensation Board decision concerning claimant Joseph Marcellino's eligibility for a schedule loss of use (SLU) award for permanent injuries to his left elbow and left thumb. Following an April 2015 accident, Marcellino had established claims for multiple injuries, undergoing surgery in 2016. Conflicting medical opinions arose between his treating orthopedic surgeon, Dimitro Christoforou, who assessed significant SLU percentages, and the carrier's orthopedic surgeon, Peter Spohn, who found minimal or no SLU for the left hand, wrist, and thumb. A Workers' Compensation Law Judge (WCLJ) credited Spohn's opinion, awarding 15% SLU for the left wrist but no permanency for the left elbow or left thumb. The Workers' Compensation Board affirmed this decision. On appeal, the Appellate Division, Third Judicial Department, affirmed the Board's decision, reiterating that the Board has the discretion to resolve conflicting medical opinions and reject medical evidence even without opposing proof, finding their determination supported by substantial evidence.

Workers' Compensation LawSchedule Loss of UsePermanent Partial DisabilityMedical EvidenceConflicting Medical OpinionsCredibility AssessmentAppellate DivisionWorkers' Compensation BoardOrthopedic InjuriesElbow Injury
References
7
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
Showing 1-10 of 12,995 results

Ready to streamline your practice?

Apply these legal strategies instantly. CompFox helps you find decisions, analyze reports, and draft pleadings in minutes.

CompFox Logo

The AI standard for workers' compensation professionals. Faster research, deeper analysis, better outcomes.

Product

  • Platform
  • Workflow
  • Features
  • Pricing

Solutions

  • Defense Firms
  • Applicants' Attorneys
  • Insurance carriers
  • Medical Providers

Company

  • About
  • Insights
  • Case Law

Legal

  • Privacy
  • Terms
  • Trust
  • Cookies
  • Subscription

© 2026 CompFox Inc. All rights reserved.

Systems Operational