| Employer's Indemnification of Third Party |
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| Generally, workers' compensation is the exclusive way to hold an employer liable for an employee's injury. However, the "exclusiveness" principle will give way in the face of an express contractual provision that the employer will indemnify a third party for payments it is required to make to an injured employee. For example, consider the employer who leases heavy construction equipment from an equipment rental facility. The lease agreement may contain a clause providing that, if a worker of the employer is injured while operating the equipment, the employer will wholly indemnify the equipment rental facility for any damages the facility is called upon to pay to the worker. More... |
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| Waiver of Limitations Period for Notice of Injury and Claim |
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| As a general rule, if an injured employee fails to either provide timely notice of his injury or file a timely claim for workers' compensation, he will be denied benefits. However, in some instances, the employer or its insurance carrier may waive the limitations periods. For example, if an employer has actual knowledge of the employee's accident and resulting injury, the employer may be said to have waived formal notice of the injury. Likewise, if the employer voluntarily makes compensation payments to the employer, he may be deemed to have waived the requirement that the employee file a claim. More... |
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| Uninsured Contractor |
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| Some employers may seek to avoid workers' compensation liability by using contractors to perform work that would normally be performed by the employer's own employees. The reasoning is that employers are responsible only for the workers' compensation coverage of "employees." However, to preclude employers from evading liability by this method, most jurisdictions will impose liability here if the contractor itself is uninsured for workers' compensation. Thus, if an employer utilizes a contractor's employees to do that which the employer's own employees would normally do, and an employee of the contractor is injured, the employer will be responsible for worker's compensation despite the fact that the injured individual is not an "employee" of the employer. These state statutes basically deem the individual an "employee" to further the goals and purpose of workers' compensation. In order to determine whether the contractor is performing work that would normally be done by the employer's own employees, courts will look to the employer's past practices as well as the practices of other employers in the same industry or trade. More... |
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| Representative Payees for Supplemental Security Income Beneficiaries |
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| When a Supplemental Security Income (SSI) beneficiary is unable to manage his SSI funds, the Social Security Administration (SSA) appoints a representative payee to do so on behalf of the beneficiary. A representative payee can be an individual, organization, agency, or institution. Generally, an SSI beneficiary in need of a representative payee includes a child under age eighteen, a legally incompetent adult, and any other person who the SSA determines to be incapable of managing his funds. More... |
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| Assaults |
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| A worker's injury that results from an assault is not compensable unless the assault arises out of his employment. The employment connection is satisfied if it is shown that the type of work or the setting in which it is performed increased the worker's risk of assault. For example, occupations that may carry a higher risk of assault due to their very nature are police officer, prison guard, and security guard, to name a few. Further, employees who work in a dangerous area of a city or who work at night may also be at an increased risk for assault. More... |
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