COVID-19 has brought to the forefront issues regarding exposure and causation of employee illness and diseases – namely, determining whether the illness or disease was likely contracted at work or away from work for workers’ compensation purposes. See our PowerPoint presentation about these matters, the new presumptions, and the possible ways that these presumptions may be rebutted.
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by: Benjamin C. Debney In 2017, the Oregon Supreme Court held that the proper statutory interpretation of a “combined condition” under ORS 656.005(7)(a)(B) is that: “an otherwise compensable injury” means the accepted condition(s) as opposed to an undefined, nebulous “work injury incident”…
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by: Benjamin C. Debney A common question for Oregon employers, third-party administrators and insurers is: when do you stop investigating a work “incident” as a potentially compensable work “injury”? Unfortunately, there is no “one-size-fits-all” answer. Such investigations are entirely dependent…
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Join Benjamin Debney, July 22, 2020, for the WCCA Summer Virtual Learning Series. Ben will be presenting on “COVID-19: Oregon Workers’ Comp Law/Claims and Presumption.”
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Washington State Department of Labor & Industries March 9, 2020 Please see link to the news release from Governor Jay Inslee and L&I Director Joel Sacks concerning the department’s policy on workers’ compensation coverage for health care workers and first responders…
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It is with mixed emotions that we, all the members of Wallace, Klor, Mann, Capener & Bishop, P.C., announce the retirement of one of the founders of the firm, John L. Klor.
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The Washington Court of Appeals issued a ruling on August 6, 2019 that may affect self-insured employers’ decisions when authorizing treatment under a workers’ compensation claim.
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Beginning January 1, 2023, Oregon employers will have to provide up to 12 weeks of paid leave to certain eligible employees. Under the recently passed House Bill 2005, which was the catalyst that created Oregon’s new Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI) Equity Act, workers who have earned at least $1,000 in wages in a base year will receive up to 12 weeks of paid time off to welcome a child to their family.
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As school is back in session and the leaves begin to change there are also some important changes to Washington’s workers compensation laws that employers should be aware of. Here is a summary of three recent changes that may affect the way your company approaches a workers’ compensation matter.
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“Obesity is not merely the status of being overweight. Obesity is recognized by the medical community as a primary disease” according to a majority opinion in the case of Casey Taylor et al. v. Burlington Northern Railroad Holdings Inc. et…
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