Defense Counsel Perspective: Five Tips for Preparing for Mediation It remains a popular preference for plaintiffs and plaintiffs’ attorneys to attend mediation virtually despite the default rule at the Commission being in-person mediations. From the defense counsel perspective, virtual mediations can prove more difficult than in-person mediations for several reasons. First, it is easier to…
An employer’s right to direct medical treatment, long recognized as a staple of the Workers’ Compensation Act, is not total. The Court of Appeals’ January 2024 decision in Horsey v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. is a reminder of that fact. Id. at 2024 N.C. App. LEXIS 61 * | 2024 WL 158256 The Plaintiff…
News from NCIC- New Integrated Case Management System The North Carolina Industrial Commission announced Wednesday, January 31st that its new integrated case management system will go live for external users in late February of 2024. The NCIC website stated that “…external users will be able to make a variety of requests electronically, including requests for…
Mediation Attendance Update On January 23, 2023, The Supreme Court of North Carolina adopted the Rules for Mediated Settlement Conferences and Other Settlement Procedures in Superior Court Civil Actions, superseding the existing set of rules in its entirety, that went into effect on May 1, 2023. Rule 4, which governs attendance at Superior Court mediations,…
On September 22, 2023, the North Carolina General Assembly passed House Bill 259 which amended G.S. § 97-29 (c) of the Workers’ Compensation Act. Specifically, the Amendment clarified the meaning of “total loss of wage-earning capacity” related to a plaintiff’s entitlement to benefits past the 500-week cap provided in the 2011 reform. As previously discussed, Sturdivant…
Under the North Carolina Workers’ Compensation Act, there are three conditions antecedent to the right to compensation: (1) that claimant suffered a personal injury by accident; (2) that such injury arose in the course of the employment; and (3) that such injury arose out of the employment. Wilson v. Town of Mooresville, 222 N.C. 283,…
Every few years, a Pleasant claim makes its way to the Court of Appeals and almost always serves as a reminder that the facts must be particularly egregious to warrant such a claim. As a reminder, if an employee is injured on the job, filing a workers’ compensation claim is typically the exclusive remedy for…
Philip A. Baddour was confirmed by the General Assembly to serve a second term as a commissioner. The 28th Annual North Carolina Industrial Commission Workers’ Compensation Educational Conference will be held October 4 through 6, 2023 at the Raleigh Convention Center. New Mediation Rules Regarding Participation The Supreme Court of North Carolina has approved amendments…
Prescription medications can be a stumbling block when it comes time to resolve a workers’ compensation claim. Insurance carriers often have preferred vendors they utilize to obtain favorable prescription costs or negotiated agreements with pharmacies, leading to less expensive medical exposure during the pendency of claims. However, claimants are often unable to benefit from these…
The N.C. Court of Appeals recently provided new guidance on calculating the average weekly wage (AWW) in a case involving a summer job for a full time graduate student. Although the case also addressed the admissibility of testimony under Rule of Evidence 702, the discussion below focuses primarily on the Court’s average weekly wage analysis.…