Employers Who Carry Workers’ Compensation Insurance Workers’ compensation is a plan with good intentions. It allows those who are injured at work, or contract a work-related illness or condition, to collect for their medical expenses and a portion of their lost wages without having to prove their employer was negligent. They just have to prove they were injured on the job. But, Texas law does not require employers to carry workers’ compensation insurance. Employees may still need legal help when trying to collect for their damages depending on the circumstances. The attorneys at Springer … [Read more...]
Texas Supreme Court Ends Bad Faith Claims for Workers
Texas Workers Compensation claimants took a big hit Friday when the Texas Supreme Court handed down a 5-4 decision in Texas Mutual Insurance Co. v. Timothy J. Ruttiger. The Court held that Workers Comp claimants cannot seek damages for bad faith denials of claims outside the administrative Workers Comp regulatory framework. Justice Willett's concurring opinion writes: "The continued existence of bad-faith claims will subvert the Legislature's meticulous soup-to-nuts system, one augmented by an immense regulatory and adjudicatory framework that, taken together, now regulates virtually … [Read more...]