March 26, 2019

Prescription on Claims for Contribution Between Employers or Insurers is governed by La. R.S. 23:1209

In a case handled by Whiteley and May Law Firm on behalf of a subsequent insurer seeking contribution from a prior insurer, the First Circuit Court of Appeal confirmed that prescription on contribution claims is governed by La. R.S. 23:1209. Big 4 Trucking, Inc. v. N.H. Ins. Co., 2017 0420 (La. App. 1 Cir. 11/1/17), 233 So.2d 686. The prior insurer argued that a one-year prescriptive period applied to all […]
March 26, 2019

An Employee Who Attempts to Impose Conditions on a Vocational Counselor Before Accepting Vocational Services May Have Benefits Reduced by 50% for Refusing to Cooperate in Vocational Rehabilitation

On February 6, 2019, the Louisiana Third Circuit Court of Appeal affirmed the reduction of an employee’s benefits by 50% when the employee refused to meet with a vocational counselor until the counselor agreed in writing to conditions demanded by the employee. Nero v. Allied Waste Services, 15-501 (La. App. 3 Cir. 2/6/19). La. R.S. 23:1226 (B)(3)(c) provides for a reduction of benefits by 50% for each week that an […]
March 26, 2019

Exclusive Remedy Provisions Apply to Minors Illegally Employed or Engaged in Illegal Tasks

On January 30, 2019, the Louisiana Supreme Court resolved a conflict among Louisiana appellate courts and confirmed that the exclusive remedy provisions of workers’ compensation law apply even when the injured worker is a minor who was illegally hired and was engaged in a task prohibited by Child Labor Law at the time of injury. Griggs v. Bounce N’ Around Inflatables, L.L.C., 2018-0726 (La. 1/30/19). In Griggs, the injured employee […]
January 21, 2019

Supreme Court Rules Employer Has the Right to Choose Injury Worker’s Pharmacy

The Louisiana Supreme Court has held that the employer has the right to choose the pharmacy which an injured worker must use for medication in a worker’s compensation claim. “La. R.S. 23:1203(A) provides that “the employer shall furnish [**15] all necessary drugs.” Nowhere in the statute does the legislature provide the employee with the right to choose a pharmaceutical provider from which to obtain the necessary prescription drugs. By contrast, […]
February 19, 2014

No Compensation for Concubines

The Louisiana Workers’ Compensation Act lists by priority the persons that may be eligible to receive death benefits when a worker dies as the result of a job accident.  After the surviving spouse, children, parents, and siblings, benefits are payable to “other dependents.”  La. R.S. 23:1232.  To qualify as an “other dependent,” a person must be related to the deceased employee or be a “member of the family” of the […]