PA Workers’ Compensation Judges (WCJs) are like other employees in many ways. Just like we see turnover in any industry among its work staff, we see WCJs leave the bench for retirement or other opportunities. Recently, we discussed two new WCJs being named to the bench by the Pennsylvania Bureau…
Though no formal announcement has been made by the Pennsylvania Bureau of Workers’ Compensation, we have learned that Holly San Angelo and Lawrence Beck have been named as new Workers’ Compensation Judges in PA. As we have previously mentioned, workers’ comp cases in Pennsylvania are typically held in the County…
As attorneys who limit their practice to representing the injured worker in PA workers’ comp cases, we are thrilled by the recent announcement that the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania has approved the process of creating a “certified workers’ compensation attorney” in Pennsylvania (or, in other words, a workers’ compensation specialist).…
Today, I received an e-mail from a Workers’ Compensation Judge (WCJ) in the Philadelphia Workers’ Compensation Hearing Office, indicating the Pennsylvania Bureau of Workers’ Compensation has now announced that certain correspondence can be sent to the WCJ by e-mail, rather than through the U.S. Postal Service. While the correspondence a…
As mentioned in our blog previously, the Workers’ Compensation office in Allentown, PA, has moved. No longer will hearings be held at 160 Hamilton Street. Now, the Pennsylvania Bureau of Workers’ Compensation has opened up the new Allentown location at 7248 Tilghman Street, Allentown, PA. The new offices feature four…
On June 30, 2011, Governor Tom Corbett signed House Bill 440, bringing the measure into law. While the Pennsylvania Bureau of Workers’ Compensation labelled this a “reform bill,” it appears it will have no real impact on injured workers in PA. Rather, the aim of the new law is to…
On many occasions over the years, we have addressed the Utilization Review (UR) process in Pennsylvania workers’ compensation cases. This is the process either party, usually the workers’ comp insurance carrier, uses to obtain a determination as to whether a treatment at issue is “reasonable and necessary” such that the…
The Allentown Workers’ Compensation Hearing Office has been located at 160 Hamilton Street, in Allentown, for several years now. We have just been advised by one of the Workers’ Compensation Judges (WCJ) at that office that the hearing location for Allentown will be moving shortly. The plan is for the…
Readers of this blog, from previous blog entries, know our frustration with the developing practice of workers’ comp insurance carriers “accepting” medical-only claims by issuing a Notice of Denial (NCD). Aside from the logical problem, there are procedural issues this creates for attorneys representing injured workers in PA. For example,…
Last week, we attended a PA Workers’ Compensation seminar in Hershey, Pennsylvania. This is the “Fall Section Meeting of the Pennsylvania Bar Association’s Workers’ Compensation Section.” For years, workers’ comp attorneys from across the entire State of PA have gathered at this seminar to learn and discuss new cases and…