The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court recently issued a published opinion on the issue of whether a former correctional officer was entitled to receive both assault pay and workers’ compensation following a work-related injury. The court reversed a judgment by the superior court and held that an employee of the Commonwealth…
The Massachusetts Reviewing Board of Industrial Accidents reviewed a decision in favor of an employer’s workers’ compensation insurer, affirming the dismissal of an injured employee’s claim for psychological impairments. In this appeal, the issue was whether it had been an abuse of discretion for the Director to deny the employee’s…
The Massachusetts Reviewing Board of Industrial Accidents recently addressed whether an administrative judge properly awarded partial incapacity benefits to an injured employee. In this case, the employee suffered injuries at work, and the employer’s self-insurer argued the judge should have determined his earning capacity as a college graduate, despite the…
Recently, the Massachusetts Reviewing Board of Industrial Accidents struck down an agreement between an excess insurer and an employer, when the employee was not aware of the agreement, nor was the Department of Industrial Accidents. In this decision, the Board focused their analysis on the need to protect injured employees from insolvent…
In an appeal involving spousal benefits issued to a deceased employee, the Massachusetts Reviewing Board of Industrial Accidents reviewed what constituted “reasonable” expenses for the surviving spouse. In this case, if the spouse was determined to be fully self-supporting, according to the workers’ compensation insurance company, she should not be…
The Massachusetts Reviewing Board recently analyzed a case involving an employee’s allegation that the judge had erred in determining that she had not proven her claim of disability based on exposure to irritants causing asthma. The Board stated that an employee’s claim for workers’ compensation based on environmental conditions at work…
In an appeal involving two separate work-related injuries, the Board affirmed a lower judge’s finding that a second incident was not the cause of further harm. Since the employee worked for two separate employers, the workers’ compensation insurance company for the first employer argued that the second employer (and insurer)…
The Massachusetts Reviewing Board of Industrial Accidents recently reviewed an administrative judge’s decision regarding § 34 and § 35 benefits, as well as § 13 and § 30 benefits, in a workers’ compensation appeal regarding an employee’s psychological harm. The Board reviewed whether the impartial examiner set forth an opinion that the…
Recently, the Massachusetts Reviewing Board of Industrial Accidents reviewed a decision in favor of an injured worker who received compensation benefits for permanent and total incapacity from his employer until his employer filed for bankruptcy. The issue in this appeal was how the employee would receive compensation, without a gap…
Recently, the Massachusetts Reviewing Board of Industrial Accidents analyzed whether an employee had met her burden of proving that her falls suffered at work were compensable under the Massachusetts Workers’ Compensation Act. In this case, the Board found that even without considering the falls, the medical evidence supported a finding that…