I was waiting on two attorneys walking through a settlement last week while at the Oakland Board. Applicant’s counsel had added some unusual language. ((Photo courtesy of Joriel “Joz” Jimenez)) The Judge read it aloud to the hearing room:
Defendants shall make payment before Christmas.
Oh, and… the Applicant was Jewish. :)
You’re probably just here to download the latest workers’ compensation case about the Cost of Living Adjustment and State Average Weekly Wage increases. ((Photo courtesy of Sister72)) ((I refuse to apologize for that pun.)) I’m not going to hold you in suspense – here’s the download link:
[download id=”22″]
Obviously, you need to read the entire decision for yourself. Here’s my oversimplification of the case:
Whenever the injured worker is due life pension payments for injuries on or after 1/1/2003, you calculate those benefits, whenever they are due, by increasing them according to the yearly increases in the state average weekly wage starting on 1/1/2004.
If some of this seems familiar, its because this is the same case as XYZZXSJO2 which came out back in February 2009. I had suggested back in February that the effect of the COLA increases on life pension payments today would be to increase them some 44% or so.
Still having trouble understanding the impact of this case? Well, you could try my XYZZXSJO2 calculator to tell you what the life pension rate should be during a given year. (Remember, this just tells you the rate – it is not a commutation calculator. These are still in the works).
What are your thoughts on Duncan v. WCAB?
There’s a lot of conflicting information about what Judge’s are requiring to making a finding of a DFEC rebuttal under Ogilvie v. City and County of S.F.. ((Photo courtesy of eliaspunch)) The Board in Ogilvie II is explicit that all you need is post-injury earnings information for the injured worker and similarly situated employees and “simple mathematical calculations with that wage data” using a “non-complex formula.” ((Ogilvie II, p1-2.))
Unfortunately, calling a process “simple” and “non-complex” doesn’t necessarily make it so. Apparently some Judges are requiring some additional showing beyond wage data and “simple calculations.”
What are Judges in your area requiring?
This last weekend while attended a meeting of the Executive Committee of the Workers’ Compensation Section of the State Bar of California I referred to myself as a workers’ compensation nerd. ((Can you believe someone already owns WCExec.com??? What a perfect domain name for the workers’ compensation executive committee!)) ((I kid because I love!))
Some very kind, but ultimately uninformed, person assured me that I was not a nerd after all. ((Glasses notwithstanding.)) ((Photo courtesy of this person.)) Let’s step back for a minute and examine the facts. At that very moment I was:
Clearly, we need to have a heart-to-heart about “substantial evidence.”
Well, last night I received an e-mail stating that they had seen this website and offered this retraction:
“I must actually withdraw my objection to your calling yourself a workers’ comp nerd.”
They must have seen my walk through posts.
