Freight Broker Liability and Federal Preemption: The Circuit Split Over Negligent Selection Claims Under 49 U.S.C. § 14501(c)

Newsletter, Subrogation, Transportation and Cargo

The Hidden Legal Fault Line in Freight Brokerage In the trucking industry, freight brokerage often appears straightforward on the surface—connecting shippers with carriers to move freight from point A to point B. Yet beneath that operational simplicity lies a steadily expanding legal fault line, where a single carrier-selection decision can become the center of multi-million-dollar…

How Arkansas Courts Dismantled Workers’ Compensation Subrogation

Newsletter, Subrogation, Workers' Compensation

Workers’ compensation subrogation was never intended to be a windfall for insurance carriers. It was, and remains, a carefully constructed legislative mechanism designed to serve broader economic and societal goals. At its core, subrogation ensures that the ultimate cost of an injury is borne by the party responsible for causing it, rather than by employers,…

MWL Paralegals Spotlight Innovation at Proof Client Panel

Newsletter, Subrogation

There is far more to aggressively pursuing subrogation than persuasive advocacy alone. Behind every successful recovery stands a coordinated team whose expertise and innovation distinguish MWL as a national leader in subrogation law. Attorneys, paralegals, and support professionals work in concert to develop forward-thinking solutions that strengthen accuracy, improve turnaround times, and provide greater visibility…

The Phantom Offset: Employer Fault, Kangaroo Courts and Attacks on Texas Workers’ Compensation Subrogation

Newsletter, Subrogation, Workers' Compensation

Texas workers’ compensation subrogation is governed by a comprehensive statutory framework that leaves little room for judicial discretion. A workers’ compensation carrier’s right to reimbursement is firmly established as a “first money” right, meaning that any recovery obtained from a third party must first be applied to reimburse the carrier for benefits paid before the…

Sweating The Small Stuff: When A Small Florida Workers’ Compensation Claim Becomes A Big Subrogation Disaster

Newsletter, Subrogation

The recent decision in Estes v. Palm Beach County School District, issued by the Florida First District Court of Appeal, highlights a growing and dangerous disconnect within Florida’s workers’ compensation system. At first glance, the case simply reaffirms the statutory framework governing the timing of workers’ compensation claims under Fla. Stat. § 440.19. But when…

The Anatomy Of A Workers’ Compensation Credit Following A Third-Party Recovery: Exxon Mobil Corp. v. Harrington, 421 So.3d 660 (Ala. 2025)

Newsletter, Subrogation

Most states permit a workers’ compensation carrier to assert a future credit against benefits otherwise payable when an injured employee recovers damages from a responsible third party. The availability of a future credit is now the rule rather than the exception. Yet, while the existence of the credit is widely accepted, the mechanics of how…

No Free Ride on Future Benefits: Utah Requires Workers’ Compensation Carriers to Pay For The Future Credit They Claim (HB Construction v. Labor Comm’n of Utah, 2026 WL 534446 (Utah 2026))

Newsletter, Subrogation, Workers' Compensation

The Utah Supreme Court has issued an important decision for workers’ compensation and subrogation professionals navigating third-party recoveries and future credits. In HB Construction and/or Auto Owners Insurance Co. v. Labor Commission of Utah, the Court resolved a long-standing ambiguity in Utah Code § 34A-2-106(5) and clarified how attorney fees must be allocated when a…

Hope Is Not A Tactic: The Importance Of Interventions In Workers’ Compensation Subrogation

Newsletter, Subrogation, Workers' Compensation

The Eleventh Circuit’s December 22nd decision in Blanchard v. Walker is a timely cautionary tale for workers’ compensation carriers about the high cost of passivity in Alabama third-party litigation.[1] Although the case arose from a multistate fact pattern, its real lesson is procedural and strategic: a carrier’s lien and subrogation recovery depend on the continued…