Facial disfigurement is the only aspect of the Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Act under which a Workers’ Compensation Judge (WCJ) has the discretion to award anywhere from zero to 275 weeks of workers’ compensation benefits. Since such injuries can range from barely noticeable to tremendously disfiguring, these cases vary widely in…
Since the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania set the PA workers’ compensation system abuzz in the Protz case by striking the entire Impairment Rating Evaluation (IRE) section from the Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Act (Act), we have waited to see some appellate decision interpreting Protz. The Commonwealth Court of PA has now…
Unfortunately, due to what appears to be a problem with Comcast business phone service across several states, we currently cannot be reached by telephone. Please try to contact us by e-mail at gneiman@bnlegal.com or dbrilliant@bnlegal.com or by messaging us at our Facebook page. We deeply regret this inconvenience, and hope…
“Notice” of a Pennsylvania work injury is an issue which we have previously addressed in this blog. Essentially, an injury must be reported to the employer within 21 days to have benefits date back to the first day, and within 120 days of the injury to have an entitlement to…
Recently, an injured worker from Lower Bucks County, PA, called us. When we discussed our Bucks County office locations, I mentioned our main office in Warminster and our satellite location in Trevose. To our surprise, the injured worker was not familiar with Warminster. As a proud commercial resident of Warminster…
Thoracic Outlet Syndrome (TOS) and Brachial Plexopathy are two conditions we see representing injured workers in Pennsylvania. These conditions were recently in the news in the Philadelphia area, with the report that Phillies pitcher Vince Velasquez underwent surgery for TOS in the previous offseason. Indeed, it is not an uncommon…
Last week, we were fortunate enough to be in attendance as the Bucks County Bar Association presented a seminar addressing the three separate branches of government, as a celebration of Law Day. Listening to presentations from each of the branches provided fascinating insight to see how government works, from the…
Recently, we discussed the status of Senate Bill 936, which was passed by the House. We are pleased to relate that Governor Thomas Wolf has vetoed this legislation, recognizing that it was a thinly disguised attack on injured workers and not a solution to any problem. As discussed in the…
A critical stage of a workers’ compensation case in PA can happen if the injured worker is offered a job by his or her employer. This may be the regular job, with or without modifications, or a different job entirely. This is when an injured worker really needs to get…
Previously, we have warned of the pending legislation that will restrict the access of injured workers across the State of Pennsylvania to get medications they need. Now, thanks to the House passing Senate Bill 936, the legislation heads to the Governor. It is not bad enough that innocent people suffered…