January 2023
October 2022
July 2022
April 2022
January 2022
October 2021
July 2021
April 2021
January 2021
October 2020
July 2020
April 2020
January 2020
October 2019
- Majority Panel Decision Shows the Statute of Limitations Does Exist
- Vocational Rehabilitation Expert Witness Reports and Liability for Fees
- Labor Code Section 4610 Clarified: Saturdays Are Not Considered Working Days
- New California Bill Amends Labor Code to Redefine “serious injury or illness” in regards to the Standard for Investigation of an Employee for Possible OSHA violation.
July 2019
April 2019
- Failure to Set an Appointment with a Selected PTP is Not a Denial of Care
- Long Term Antibiotic use may be Considered Insidious Disease Process Extending WCAB Jurisdiction
- Ratings for the Spine: When is it Appropriate for a PQME to Utilize Range of Motion Method?
- Beyond Conditions Essential for Intoxication Defense
January 2019
October 2018
July 2018
April 2018
January 2018
- New Laws for 2018
- Is an Applicant Entitled to a Labor Code §5814 Penalty for Late Supplemental Return to Work Payments Made by the Administrative Director Due to Delay Caused by the Defendants?
- Priority Conferences and Expedited Hearings
- Medical Treatment Utilization Schedule: New Regulations for Drug Formulary
- Understanding Subrogation
October 2017
July 2017
April 2017
January 2017
October 2016
July 2016
April 2016
January 2016
October 2015
- The Vocational Rehabilitation Expert Witness Pendulum Swings Again
- Medical Marijuana Can Be Considered Reasonable Medical Care
- Prescription Formulary is on the Horizon for California Workers’ Compensation
- BEWARE: Applicant Entitled to MULTIPLE Supplemental Job Displacement Vouchers Under Labor Code §4658.5 and §4658.7
- California Fair Pay Act
July 2015
April 2015
- Requirement of Further Developing the Record For A Complete Medical History: Am Kang
- Down But Not Out: The Potential for Tolling of a Statute of Limitations
- Knowledge of the Law Trumps AME Opinion
- When in Doubt Offer Regular, Modified, or Alternative Work: Understanding Labor Code Section 4658
- Is Labor Code § 4662(b) Subject to Apportionment?
January 2015
October 2014
- Not so fast, The Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board Rescinds Dubon I and Issues New Determination
- [Overturned] Dubon: WCAB Involvement for Procedurally Deficient Utilization Review
- California Mandates Paid Sick Leave
- Vocational Rehabilitation Expert Opinion and Apportionment
- Extended Shift for Correctional Officer not Extraordinary in Denial of Death Benefits
- Returning Employees Back to Work – Common Mistakes
July 2014
April 2014
January 2014
October 2013
- Interpreter Liens for Medical Treatment: A Case Review
- Yogurt, Yoga and the Coming and Going Rule
- Independent Medical Review Delays
- Apportionment Unscathed by SB863
- Can the Statue of Limitations be Waived by Stipulation?
- How to Challenge Compound Medication Liens
- Hypertension, Presumptions and ‘Troubled’ Conditions
- Subrogation Update: Nonindustrial Aggravation of Industrial Injuries
- The Importance of Providing the Claim Form
- Better Understanding of Compensable Consequences
- Q&A
July 2013
April 2013
January 2013
- Illegal Immigrant Status as a Bar to Total Temporary Disability
- Can a Chiropractor be Predesignated as a Personal Physician?
- Collateral Estoppel Issues in Workers’ Compensation
- SB 863: Changes to the Supplemental Job Displacement Benefit
- What You Should Know About SB863 Independent Medical Review
- A Lien Claimant’s Burden
- Is an Electronically Signed Medical Report Legally Sufficient Evidence in a Workers’ Compensation Proceeding?
- The Essential Job Function of an Administrative Police Officer
- Recent Happenings with Labor Code section 4850
October 2012
- SB 863: The Not-So Talked About Changes Which Take Quick Effect
- Inspection Of Employee Records
- Subpoenas for Records From a Party to the Action
- Loss of Consortium in Workers’ Compensation
- Fighting Cancer Under Labor Code Section 3212.1
- Challenging Duplicate Copy Services
- Setting Aside Settlements
- Outside the MPN? Now Heard Sooner Than Later
- Separating Overtime and Salary
- Q&A
July 2012
- New Lien Regulations: Petition to Dismiss for Lack of Prosecution
- Release of Employment Records Without a Subpoena
- Recent Developments in Work Product Doctrine: Coito
- Clarification on Breaks and Meals: Brinker
- LeBoeuf: Resurrected and Broadened
- Sexual Harassment and Franchise Liability
- Take Nothing: MRSA Presumption Rebutted
- Physical Manifestations of Stress
- Q&A
April 2012
- Denying TD After a Valid Termination
- WCAB Sanctioning Lien Claimants for Questionable Activities
- Partial PD Credit Against Future Medical
- Can TTD Go On Forever?
- Proving Up Your MPN
- C&R: Dealing with Government Entities
- I’m Feeling Sleepy
- Conflicts between Union Contracts and Workers’ Compensation Benefits
- When Does the 60 Day Return to Work Period Start?
- Q&A
January 2012
- New Workers’ Compensation Laws for 2012
- Can You Take a Credit For a Severance Agreement?
- Hearing Representatives and the Rules of Professional Conduct
- Service Please. Failure to Serve Settlement Documents a Cause for Concern?
- The 240 Week Bright Line For Death Benefit Claims
- WCAB Panel Decision: No to Expedited Hearings for UR Determinations
- The Interview: Can I Ask That Question? Business Necessity, Age and Sex
- When was the Last Time a Chiropractor Paid You?
- Working or Calendar Days? Five Day Notice Requirements
- Q&A
October 2011
- Legislative Updates: Employment Law and Workers’ Compensation
- Violence in the Workplace: My Disability Made Me Do It
- Reacquisition of MPN Control
- 100% Disabled Doesn’t Always Mean 100% Unemployable
- Subrogation Against the Government: Act Fast or You Could Lose Your Rights
- Subpoena: Give Me Everything
- Howell Decision Disallows Plaintiff’s Phantom Charges
- Q&A (A)
- Q&A (B)
July 2011
- The 104 Week-Rule: Understanding the Distinction between LC 4656(c)(1) and LC 4656(c)(2)
- Volunteers: Employees or not?
- Non-MPN Reports: Inadmissible Evidence
- Concerns over DWC Medical Unit Letter on Panel QME Issues
- Treatment Referrals: Who Can Make Them?
- Experience Modifications by the WCIRB: Establishment, Promulgation and Assignment
- Q&A
April 2011
- Applicant’s Increased Burden in Establishing a Labor Code 132a Claim
- Ability of the Court to Reopen the Record May be Limited
- MPN – Notice, Notice, Notice
- Change of Venue: Too late to File?
- Workers’ Compensation Fraud: The Warning Signs
- Beware of Hold Harmless Language in Settlements
- Utilization Review: Request for Authorization
- A Deposition Learning Lesson
- Q&A
January 2011
- Welcome to 2011
- Layoffs and Labor Code §4658 Decreases
- The New LeBoeuf Argument: Labor Code section 4662
- Defining New and Further Disability in a Petition to Reopen
- The Laches Defense
- Vocational Rehabilitation Rears its Ugly Head Again
- California Workers’ Compensation Insurance Outlook 2011: An Attorney and Employer’s Perspective
- Temporary Partial Disability: What Happens When the Applicant Voluntarily Quits?
- Understanding the Supplemental Job Displacement Benefit
- Q&A
October 2010
- The Importance of Employer Involvement
- The Pitfalls of the Hold Harmless
- To Advance or Not to Advance: The New PD Problem
- Bigge Crane: Defining the Players in a S&W case
- Are You an Employer Without Even Knowing It?
- Utilization Review: Timelines and Denial Issues
- Timing and the Effective Use of Subrogation Credits
- Chiropractic Treatment: Defenses and Requirements?
- Guzman: Now What?
- Q&A – An injured worker…
- Q&A – Is Labor Code §4850…
- Q&A – If we have safety personnel…
July 2010
- A Case to Die For?
- A Permanent Disability Increase/Decrease Update
- Communicating With Your Panel QME Can Result in a Replacement Panel
- Defendants’ Right to LC §4060 Med-Legal Exams After a Denial
- Increasing the Role of the WCJ in Rating Permanent Disability
- The Increasing Role of Medicare in Claims
- Tips on Submitting Settlement Documents in EAMS
- Understanding Issues with Case Venue
- Q&A
April 2010
- 2010 Relevant Statutory and Regulatory Changes
- Labor Code §4600.2: Are You Missing the Potential Savings?
- Understanding the Cost of Living Adjustment after Duncan
- Applicant’s Burden of Proof for Rebutting the Permanent Disability Rating Schedule
- Understanding the Labor Code §4658 15% Increase/Decrease
- The Current Procedure for a Request for Spinal Surgery
- Tips on Requesting a Panel of Qualified Medical Evaluators
- Your Failure to Dance May Cost You Money!
- Determining Liability for Injuries Resulting from Travel to Medical Appointments
- Q&A
January 2010
- PKNW Successfully Defends Against Lien Claimant on MPN Defense
- A Possible Stay on Ogilvie Cases?
- Avoiding Problems with EDD
- Defining Reasonable Medical Probability
- Horseplay: Still a Viable Defense Work Injury
- In Defense of Psyche Claims
- Subrogation Concerns: 1st District increases the liability for, as well as the potential number of Defendants in, Construction Site Injury Cases
- Walk-thrus and the In Pro Per
- Q&A
October 2009
