Earlier this year, the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board (WCAB) issued an instructive decision in the case of Ayala v. Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation/Lancaster State Prison. The Board found that it has the authority to increase IDL payments by 50% on the grounds of an employer’s serious and willful misconduct. Here, our Fresno workers’ compensation […]
On July 11, 2022, the California Department of Insurance announced that Q’Orianka Kilcher—a 32-year-old North Hollywood, CA actress famous for her role on the hit TV show ‘Yellowstone’—has been charged with two felony counts of workers’ compensation fraud. Authors contend that Ms. Kilcher collected more than $90,000.00 of workers’ compensation disability benefits that were not […]
The California Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) is clear: Employers in our state “are required by law to have workers’ compensation insurance.” An uninsured employer could face several different sanctions, including: Civil legal action in the form of personal injury liability; A state-issued fine that could be as high as $10,000.00 per worker; A doubling […]
Earlier this year, the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board (WCAB) reached a decision in the case of Cory Sather, Applicant v. Trion Solutions, Inc.,—a dispute over the proper calculation of average weekly wages for workers’ compensation benefits. The WCAB concluded that the employer/insurer should have included a worker’s impending raise when calculating workers’ compensation benefits. Here, […]
On June 16, 2022, the California Department of Insurance announced that Gamlet Abramian, a 47-year-old business owner from Los Angeles County, has been arraigned on workers’ compensation fraud charges. Prosecutors contend that Mr. Abramian knowingly and willfully misreported payroll, thereby underpaying workers’ compensation insurance premiums by at least $212,667.00. Here, our Fresno workers’ compensation defense […]
Costs are rising across the United States. Recently, Bloomberg News reported that the national inflation rate hit a 40-year high. The medical and legal costs of workers’ compensation in California are rising sharply as well. On June 5, 2022, the Insurance Journal reported that costs for resolving workers’ compensation disputes are rising even faster than […]
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced an increase in the mileage reimbursement rate for the second half of 2022. The standard mileage reimbursement rate for all business-related travel will be 62.5 cents per mile from July 1, 2022 to December 31, 2022. The mileage reimbursement rate was previously 58.5 cents per mile—meaning it is increasing […]
In recent years, California has significantly tightened its regulations on the use of independent contractors. Unlike an employee, an independent contractor is not entitled to no-fault workers’ compensation insurance coverage. However, an employer cannot simply choose who is classified as an employee and who is classified as an independent contractor. In this blog post, our […]
Workers’ compensation fraud remains a serious problem in our state. Three business owners were recently indicted and arraigned on criminal workers’ compensation fraud charges. As reported by Insurance Journal, the following three individuals are facing criminal workers’ compensation fraud allegations: Troy Williams of Angels Camp, California; Nanci Morman, of Somerset, California; and John Allison, of […]
According to a report from the Insurance Journal, the written premium for California workers’ claims in 2021 was 2% lower than 2020 and 14% lower than 2019. The decrease was driven largely by a drop in the charged workers’ compensation insurance rate. Here, our Fresno workers’ compensation defense lawyer provides a more in-depth assessment of […]