Employers’ SB 1159 Compliance Guide
- September 30th, 2020
- Tom Richard
- No comments
This article is designed to help employers and business owners understand the employer reporting obligations of SB 1159, the COVID-19 workers’ compensation presumption law. What happened? Basically, the State of California has outsourced to employers much of the public health…
COVID-19 Presumption Law In Effect Immediately
- July 29th, 2020
- Tom Richard
- No comments
SB 1159, the COVID-19 workers’ compensation presumption bill, was signed into law by the Governor on September 17, 2020, and is effective immediately. Employers and claims departments must now comply with the reporting requirements established under Labor Code § 3212.88,…
COVID-19 Presumption Expired: Now What?
- July 7th, 2020
- Tom Richard
- No comments
Sunday, July 5, 2020 was the last day of the COVID-19 presumption of workers’ compensation injury created by Executive Order N-62-20. The Order has not yet been extended. There is pending legislation on COVID-19, including SB1159, which would codify the…
Subrogation in the News
- July 3rd, 2020
- Tom Richard
- No comments
Workers’ Compensation subrogation was in the news recently when RTGR Law’s head of Subrogation and Employment Law, Tom Richard, was quoted by KTVU news regarding a subrogation claim for $142,000 filed in federal court. About Subrogation: Under California law, an…
Police Workers’ Comp Entitlements Reviewed
- June 25th, 2020
- Tom Richard
- No comments
Significant public attention is focused on the rights afforded only to police officers under state laws across the country. For example, some laws prohibit the media or the public from inspecting or reviewing police officer disciplinary records. Others, such as…
Tom Richard will present a COVID-19 program at CALPELRA’s Annual Conference
- June 16th, 2020
- Tom Richard
- No comments
RTGR Law’s Managing Partner, Tom Richard, will present a continuing education program entitled: COVID-19 Workers’ Compensation Claims & Litigation Update, as one of over 75 sessions offered at this year’s CALPELRA Annual Training Conference. This year, due to restrictions on large…
Does the COVID-19 Presumption create Employer 3rd Party liability?
- June 4th, 2020
- Tom Richard
- No comments
Employers are asking if Executive Order N-62-20, which creates the COVID-19 Presumption of workplace injury, will inadvertently open employers up to personal injury lawsuits from 3rd parties, who claim to have contracted the disease from an infected employee. The Order…
Apportionment Wins: Court of Appeal limits Hikida case
- May 28th, 2020
- Tom Richard
- No comments
On May 27th, the 6th District Court of Appeal published an important decision in the matter of County of Santa Clara v. WCAB (Justice), which narrowed the Hikida holding significantly. The case is a win for California employers. You can…
COVID-19 Presumption created by Executive Order
- May 6th, 2020
- Tom Richard
- No comments
EXECUTIVE ORDER N-62-20 was issued by the Governor on May 6, 2020. The Order creates a rebuttable presumption of COVID-19 injury under limited circumstances. The presumption expires on July 5, 2020. The Executive Order applies to any employee, not just…
Managers and Supervisors Can Attend Psyche Depositions
- May 1st, 2020
- Tom Richard
- No comments
A WCAB panel affirmed the right of employer representatives to be present at depositions in psyche injury claims. In a recent panel decision, the WCAB held that a claimant’s direct manager or supervisor can attend the applicant’s deposition, as opposed…