Employers have a duty to get no-fault workers’ compensation insurance coverage for both full-time and part-time employees (California Labor Code § 3700). If a worker is hurt on the job, they can claim benefits without proving that the employer was negligent or otherwise caused their accident. Of course, that does not mean that a workers’ […]
As defined by Healthcare.gov, a pre-existing condition is a health problem that a person already had before their new coverage starts. Pre-existing conditions can be matters of dispute in workers’ compensation claims. The primary issue: Who is responsible for an injury if an employee already had a medical condition before the workplace accident? In this […]
Workers’ compensation insurance fraud harms everyone. It poses tremendous financial costs on employers, insurers, and employees. There have long been serious concerns about the extent of the workers’ compensation fraud problem in California. According to a report from Business Insurance, insurers are now making a renewed push to stop the fraud. In this article, our […]
According to a report from the Insurance Journal, Adan Deniz, a contractor from Los Angeles County, has been arrested and charged with nearly two dozen counts of workers’ compensation fraud. Mr. Deniz is alleged to have intentionally underreported his company’s payroll by several hundreds of thousands of dollars, thereby bilking the state’s insurance fund out […]
On March 17, 2022, California State Assemblymember Freddie Rodriguez officially introduced Assembly Bill 2614 (AB 2614)—a workers’ compensation reform bill focused on changing the way state law would apply to staffing agencies, other labor contracting firms, and their clients. In this article, our Fresno workers’ compensation defense lawyer discusses the recent work injury reform bill […]
According to a recent study published by the California Workers’ Compensation Institute (CWCI), there has been a sudden and sharp decline in the use of independent medical reviews (IMRs) in workers’ compensation claims in California over the past six years. In fact, the number of IMR decision letters issued hit a record low in the […]
One of the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic was an increase in the prevalence of remote work. With more employees working from home, there have been some questions raised about how exactly that will affect workers’ compensation claims. In the recent case of Colonial Van & Storage Inc., v. Superior Court of Fresno County, a […]
According to a report from CBS SF Bay Area, a psychiatrist based in San Francisco has been sentenced to prison in connection with a workers’ compensation fraud scheme. George Demetrius Karalis, 76, will serve a sentence of 120 days in prison and will pay $1.4 million in financial restitution to the affected parties. The judgment […]
California has a mandatory workers’ compensation law in place. Under California law (Labor Code § 3700), all businesses and organizations that have employees in the state must meet this requirement. An employer that is uninsured in violation of California’s workers’ compensation law can face significant sanctions. In this article, our Bakersfield workers’ compensation defense attorney […]
A no-fault workers’ compensation case is typically the only remedy that an injured worker has against an employer. However, under California Labor Code § 4553, there is an exception for cases in which an employee is injured due to “serious and willful misconduct” by an employer. Employers found liable for serious and willful misconduct can […]
