PENNSYLVANIA COMP CARRIER RECOVERS FULL LIEN AFTER ADVISING PLAINTIFF’S COUNSEL THAT LIEN WAS MUCH SMALLER: Janelle Newsome, Petitioner v. City of Philadelphia (Workers’ Comp. Appeal Bd.), Respondent, 2024 WL 3406202 (Pa. Commw. 2024).

In a rare example of how strong a workers’ compensation statutory lien can be, a Pennsylvania appellate court affirmed a ruling by a Workers’ Compensation Judge (affirmed by the Workers’ Compensation Appeal Board (WCAB)) in which a workers’ compensation carrier…

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WHICH WORKERS’ COMPENSATION “BENEFITS” CAN BE SUBROGATED? Recovery of Case Management Costs, Medical Bill Audit fees, Rehabilitation Benefits, Utilization Review Costs, IME’s, Nurse Case Worker Fees, Attorneys’ Fees, and Other “Allocated” Loss Adjustment Expenses

It’s the question every claims professional and trial attorney claims to know but few fully understand. In addition to paying for medical expenses, death benefits, funeral costs and/or indemnity benefits for lost wages resulting from a compensable injury, workers’ compensation…

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Texas

TEXAS COURT MAKES IT EASIER FOR WORKERS’ COMPENSATION CARRIER TO SETTLE DIRECTLY WITH THE TORTFEASOR AND AVOID PAYING ATTORNEYS’ FEES TO THE EMPLOYEE Sentry Casualty Company v. Bravin, 2024 WL 3083299 (Tex. App. 2024).

A new Texas Court of Appeals decision has clarified the process by which a workers’ compensation carrier can settle directly with a third-party tortfeasor and thereby avoid having to reduce its lien by a pro rata share of the employee’s…

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