The Indiana Court of Appeals reversed a lower court’s ruling that the city of South Bend should not be held liable for the injuries a man obtained after falling into a pothole in downtown South Bend two years ago. The Court of Appeals determined that the city failed to designate sufficient evidence to prove it was entitled to immunity under…
A federal judge won’t dismiss a complaint from the family of a woman who is now cognitively impaired after she suffered an overdose-induced cardiac arrest while in custody, injuries they blame on Chicago police officers who allegedly failed to notice one of 27 ecstasy pills lodged inside her vagina. U.S. District Judge Manish Shah issued an opinion June 15 preserving…
A state appeals panel will allow a man who was struck by a car while walking to sue New Lenox for his injuries, because the man claims police officers were essentially obligated to drive him home after allegedly picking him up for trespassing at Silver Cross Hospital, rather than leaving him in a restaurant parking lot in Orland Park, near…
The Supreme Court on Thursday sided against a Missouri man who claimed that the herbicide Roundup caused his cancer. The majority of the court backed an argument from the product’s manufacturer that the lawsuit should have been barred because the federal government does not require a cancer warning on the label. Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote the opinion for a 7-2…
A federal appeals court upheld workers compensation benefits for a former shipyard painter who developed breathing difficulties after years of exposure to paint fumes, chemicals and sandblasting materials. In Jeffboat Inc. and American Longshore Mutual Association Ltd. v. Director, Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs, and Calvin F. Chaffers, the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a Benefits Review Board…
Saying a St. Clair County judge applied an improper legal standard and allowed trial lawyers to bias a jury, an Illinois appeals court has tossed out a $60 million verdict in favor of a woman who claimed formula maker Mead Johnson should pay for her premature baby’s death, allegedly from an illness caused by Enfamil baby formula. On June 12,…
Litigation is creeping deeper into workers compensation claims, adding cost and complexity for employers, even as the line remains broadly profitable and protected by exclusive remedy. “We’re operating in a more adversarial claim environment than we ever have,” said Matt Hannon, New York-based national casualty practice leader for Aon in North America. “Litigation is being driven by both economic pressures…
The Indiana Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in two cases on June 30, one of which involves the reversal of a $42 million damages award given to an Avon man who was seriously injured in a 2017 crash involving a truck owned by Tesla. At 9 a.m., the state’s high court will hear oral arguments in the case, Shepard…
As heat exposure becomes a more visible workplace risk, workers compensation claims professionals say disputes are not always about whether a worker suffered a classic heat illness, but whether heat contributed to another medical event or injury. That question is complicating causation reviews in claims involving fainting, falls, cardiac symptoms, dehydration or other events that may not initially be coded…
An Illinois man who suffered severe injuries to his hand and fingers in a dog attack received a $300,000 settlement, the law firm John J. Malm & Associates said. The man attacked by two pit bulls while taking his German Shepard for a walk in the town of Elgin. The incident occurred when he tried to separate the pit bulls…
