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Articles on Workers Compensation

The Unwritten Rule of Manifest Weight Cases: Is the Decision Well Supported in Southern Glazer’s Wine and Spirits of Illinois v. Illinois Workers’ Compensation Comm’n By Howard H. Ankin Workers’ Compensation Law, February 2022 In Southern Glazer’s Wine and Spirits of Illinois v. Illinois Workers’ Compensation Comm’n, a case involving the manifest weight of the evidence and repetitive trauma in spinal injury claims.
Appellate Court Affirms IWCC Permanency Award but Remands for Vocational Rehabilitation Assessment: What Now? By Suzanne Nyhan Workers’ Compensation Law, November 2021 A summary and analysis of CDW Corporation v. The Illinois Workers’ Compensation Comm’n.
A Bench Perspective By Justice William E. Holdridge, Ashley Kidd, Hailey Rehberg Witt, & Steven Winger Workers’ Compensation Law, November 2021 Frequently asked questions about the Workers' Compensation Commission. 
Experts Duel Over Annual Tear in Lumbar Spine as Commission’s Reliance on One Expert Passes Manifest Weight Standard By Derek Dominguez Workers’ Compensation Law, November 2021 In Cassens Transport v. Illinois Worker’s Compensation Comm'n and Raymond Simental, the appellate court found that the Commission’s reliance on a particular expert for its causation finding was not against the manifest weight of the evidence.
International Shoe and Retaliatory Discharge Actions in Illinois: Lusk v. Unckrich Corp., 2021 IL App (5th) 200368 By Tiana Muntner Workers’ Compensation Law, November 2021 Lusk v. Unckrich Corp. sets precedent for analyzing a challenge to personal jurisdiction with an out-of-state defendant employer in the context of retaliatory discharge claims. 
Arising Out of ‘Walk This Way’: Purdy Brothers Trucking, LLC v. IWCC By Jim Babcock Workers’ Compensation Law, September 2021 A summary and analysis of Purdy Brothers Trucking, LLC v. Illinois Workers' Compensation Comm'n.
Illinois Insurance Guaranty Fund—Who, What, When, Why, and How? By Matthew J. Rokusek Workers’ Compensation Law, September 2021 An overview of the Illinois Insurance Guaranty Fund.
The View From the Dais/Bench/Desk/Table By Gerald Napleton & Dennis O’Brien Workers’ Compensation Law, September 2021 Arbitrators and judges often face similar problems, though the methods of resolution are not always the same.
When It Pays to Retire: City Water, Light & Power v. IWCC By Gregory Booth Workers’ Compensation Law, September 2021 A summary and analysis of City Water, Light & Power v. Illinois Workers’ Compensation Comm'n.
Bowen v. IWCC: On the Importance of Language Setting Aside or Confirming a Commission Decision to Avoid Jurisdiction Dismissal By Paul E.H. Rademacher & Joshua A. Humbrecht Workers’ Compensation Law, July 2021 A summary and analysis of Joseph E. Bowen v. IWCC.
PPD v. Wage Differential: When Is an Award Under §8(d)(2) Instead of §8(d)(1) Against the Manifest Weight of the Evidence By Brent R. Eames Workers’ Compensation Law, July 2021 When it comes to assessing permanency, the Illinois Supreme Court has expressed a preference for wage differential awards over scheduled awards.
Claimant’s Burden of Proof in Premise Fall Claims By Herb Franks Workers’ Compensation Law, May 2021 In Vaughan v. IWCC, the appellate court affirmed the denial of a worker’s claim for benefits resulting from a fall in the employer’s parking lot, finding that the claimant failed to satisfy her burden of proving that the injury arose out of employment.
Does Section 21 of the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act Exempt the Proceeds of a Workers’ Compensation Settlement? By Deborah Benzing Workers’ Compensation Law, May 2021 The Illinois Supreme Court recently held that under section 21 of the Illinois Workers' Compensation Act, the proceeds of a workers’ compensation settlement are still exempt from the claims of medical-care providers who treated the illness or injury associated with that settlement.
‘Last Act Necessary’ to Make a Contract of Employment: Timeline of Random Events or Something More? By Markham Jeep Workers’ Compensation Law, May 2021 A summary and analysis of Aureus Medical Group v. Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission.
The Manifest Weight Standard on Review: PSSI, Inc. v. IWCC, et al., 2021 IL App (2d) 200463WC-U By Jack Linn Workers’ Compensation Law, May 2021 A summary and analysis of PSSI, Inc. v. IWCC, et al.
Mind the Gap: Maroney’s Rule 23 Caution on Causal Connection By Robert Finley Workers’ Compensation Law, May 2021 In Kevin Maroney v. Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission, the appellate court issued and order filed under Supreme Court Rule 23, which provides for precedent in limited circumstances under Rule 23(e)(1).
Appellate Court Affirms Reasoning by Commission That Numerous Doctors With Multiple Medical Opinions Does Not Meet Burden of Proof Required to Compel Payment of Benefits By Timothy O’Gorman Workers’ Compensation Law, March 2021 The appellate court in Agbezouhlon v. IWCC modified in part and affirmed in part a decision of the Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission, which found that claimant was injured on January 29, 2008, and reached maximum medical improvement on June 19, 2008.
1 comment (Most recent April 8, 2021)
Can a Treating Physician Opine That a Claimant Could Not Be Competitively Employed? By Richard D. Hannigan Workers’ Compensation Law, March 2021 Monterey Mushrooms Inc v. IWCC deals with the qualifications of a treating physician to testify regarding vocational issues.
A Contractual Obligation to Pay Workers’ Compensation Benefits Allows a General Contractor to Exercise the Exclusive Remedy Provision By Timothy O’Gorman Workers’ Compensation Law, March 2021 In Munoz v. Bulley & Andrews, the appellate court clarified when a general contractor may exercise the exclusive remedy provision even when the employee of a subcontractor is injured.
The Manifest Weight Standard on Review: American Coal v. IWCC By Jack Linn Workers’ Compensation Law, March 2021 A summary of American Coal v. IWCC, wherein the arbitrator denied benefits because the petitioner could not prove that he suffered from coal workers’ pneumoconiosis.
A Refresher Course in Repetitive Trauma Cases By Richard D. Hannigan Workers’ Compensation Law, March 2021 Greater Peoria Mass Transit District v. IWCC provides us with a blueprint for how to defend and/or prosecute a repetitive trauma claim.
Where a Claimant Who Was the Owner of a Subcontractor Company Excludes Himself From Company’s Workers’ Compensation Coverage, Appellate Court Finds He Is an Employee of the General Contractor and Is Covered Under the Act By Kenneth Lubinski Workers’ Compensation Law, March 2021 In Molasky v. IWCC, the appellate court reversed the Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission's finding that there was no employer-employee relationship between the claimant and the general contractor.
Illinois Courts Remain Inflexible When It Comes to Employment Risks By Scott R. Hall Workers’ Compensation Law, January 2021 In Flex-N-Gate Logistics v. Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission, et al., the petitioner truck driver, alleged that he injured his cervical spine, right arm, and left knee while walking up a set of stairs at his employer’s premises.
‘Mental-Mental’ Injuries Found Compensable Under a Manifest Weight Standard By Mallory Zimet Workers’ Compensation Law, January 2021 In a recent Rule 23 decision, the appellate court found that the Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission’s determination that the petitioner suffered a sudden, severe emotional shock traceable to a definite time, place, and cause that resulted in a psychological injury was not against the manifest weight of the evidence.
Stay on Workers’ Compensation Proceedings by Circuit Court Relying on the Doctrine of Primary Jurisdiction Was Improper By Tammy A. Paquette Workers’ Compensation Law, January 2021 A summary and analysis of West Bend Mutual Insurance Co. v. TRRS Corp.
What Are the Risks a Claimant Takes When He Refuses a Light Duty Job Offer? By Katlyn Rowe-Brasel Workers’ Compensation Law, January 2021 A case summary and analysis that explores the risks claimants take in refusing a light duty job offer.
What to Do When a Court Inequitably Applies an Equitable Doctrine? By Kurst Niermann Workers’ Compensation Law, January 2021 Armstead v. National Freight is a case that demonstrates the  damage settlement language can cause for collateral claims.
City of Springfield v. I.W.C.C., 2020 IL App (4th) 190817 WC-U By Matteo Rago Workers’ Compensation Law, November 2020 A summary and analysis of City of Springfield v. I.W.C.C., which addresses the following three questions: (1) what is required to provide an employer with notice of a work-related accident within 45 days; (2) what constitutes a work-related accident; and (3) whether claimant suffered a workplace injury.
McCallister v. The IWCC: The Supreme Court of Illinois’ Extension of Injuries That ‘Arise Out Of’ a Petitioner’s Employment and a Departure From the Traditional Adcock Analysis By Paul E. H. Rademacher & Joshua A. Humbrecht Workers’ Compensation Law, November 2020 A summary and analysis of Kevin McCallister v. The Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission, in which the Illinois Supreme Court considered the compensability of a knee injury a sou chef suffered while employed at a Chicago restaurant.
Two Cases Involving Appellate Court Jurisdiction-Appellant Beware By Michael A. Rom Workers’ Compensation Law, November 2020 Within a month, the appellate court issued two decisions in which they found they lacked jurisdiction to hear an appeal, both of which serve as a reminder to practitioners to only appeal a final award.

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