People who suffer injuries while on the job may be owed worker’s compensation benefits. Additionally, if their harm arose out of the negligence of a party other than their employer, they may be able to pursue civil claims for damages as well. In such instances, the defendant will often try…
Articles Posted in Workers’ Compensation
Massachusetts Court Discusses Workers’ Compensation Retaliation Claims
Under Massachusetts law, people hurt at work have the right to seek workers’ compensation benefits from their employers. Some employers view employees that file workers’ compensation claims unfavorably, however, and will go so far as to terminate them for asserting their lawful rights. While employers who are fired for pursuing…
Massachusetts Court Discusses Notice Required to Cancel a Workers’ Compensation Policy
It is well-established that employees who suffer injuries while working typically can recover workers’ compensation benefits from their employers. Employers generally do not carry the risk of having to pay their employees such benefits, though. Instead, they usually purchase workers’ compensation insurance. If an employer fails to pay its insurance…
Massachusetts Court Discusses Credibility in Workers’ Compensation Cases
It is critical for people who suffer injuries at work to notify their employers of their harm as soon as possible. If they fail to do so, they may ultimately be denied workers’ compensation benefits. This was demonstrated in a recent Massachusetts ruling, in which the court affirmed a claimant’s…
Court Discusses Limitations Imposed by the Massachusetts Workers’ Compensation Act
The Massachusetts Workers’ Compensation Act (the Act) offers protection to employees in that it allows them to recover workers’ compensation benefits for harm sustained in the workplace. In exchange for the right to receive such benefits, however, the Act precludes employees from pursuing personal injury claims against their employers. Notably,…
Court Explains the Exclusivity Provision of the Massachusetts Workers’ Compensation Act
The Massachusetts Workers’ Compensation Act (the Act) grants employees who suffer harm in the workplace the right to seek workers’ compensation benefits. The exclusivity provision of the Act generally precludes employees from pursuing personal injury claims against their employer, however. In other words, they are limited to recovering benefits under…
Massachusetts Court Discusses Time Limits in Workers’ Compensation Claims
When people die from injuries sustained at work, their surviving family members can often recover workers’ compensation benefits, including adjustments for the cost of living. Usually, such benefits are not actually paid by the deceased person’s employer but by their employer’s workers’ compensation insurer. In some cases in which multiple…
Massachusetts Court Explains Proof of Retaliatory Termination
Employees who sustain injuries in the workplace have the right to seek workers’ compensation benefits from their employers. Some employers will begrudgingly pay such benefits but then will retaliate against their employees for seeking such benefits. Employers who are terminated for seeking workers’ compensation benefits have a right to pursue…
Massachusetts Court Discusses Dismissal of Injured Employee’s Civil Claims
Massachusetts, like many states, enacted a Workers’ Compensation Act (the Act) that grants employees injured at work the right to recover benefits. The Act bars employees from pursuing civil claims against their employers, however. While employers will often assert that the exclusivity provision of the Act bars civil claims, it…
Massachusetts Court Discusses Determining if Harm is Work-Related
In Massachusetts, people hurt at work are limited in terms of recovery for their losses. Specifically, while work-related harm garners them the right to recover workers’ compensation benefits, it is at the exclusion of other civil damages pursuant to the provisions of the Massachusetts Workers’ Compensation Act (the Act). If…