Christian Petrucci

August 12, 2024 | The Legal Intelligencer

Last week, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court revisited the setting aside of mistaken obligations in the matter of VNA of St. Luke's Home Health/Hospice v. Oritz (Workers' Compensation Appeals Board). In so doing, it looked back to the long-standing precedent articulated in Barna and Beissel.

By Christian Petrucci

6 minute read

May 14, 2024 | The Legal Intelligencer

Last month, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court brought unreasonable contest attorney fees back to the forefront in the precedential matter of Torres v. Amazon.com Services (Workers' Compensation Appeals Board), and offered further elaboration as to the Supreme Court's holding in Lorino.

By Christian Petrucci

7 minute read

March 28, 2024 | The Legal Intelligencer

The claimant did an excellent job of demonstrating the error in the board's opinion that had reversed her success before the WCJ in a termination petition. As the court determined that the case was "precedential" a review is warranted.

By Christian Petrucci

5 minute read

January 30, 2024 | The Legal Intelligencer

The appellate process when confronted with a remand can become a minefield. It is important for the practitioner to become familiar with the nuances of when and how to appeal. A review of Wheatley and its progeny as cited in the case, could prove to be invaluable.

By Christian Petrucci

4 minute read

November 21, 2023 | The Legal Intelligencer

The case considers whether an employer should be held responsible for notifying an injured worker when the three-year statute of repose of Section 413(a) of the act would expire.

By Christian Petrucci

7 minute read

September 29, 2023 | The Legal Intelligencer

The court ultimately concluded that the communications in question as revealed in the record were not sufficient to satisfy the notice requirements of the act, thereby reversing the underlying decisions of both the workers' compensation judge (WCJ) and the Workers' Compensation Appeal Board (board).

By Christian Petrucci

7 minute read

August 24, 2023 | The Legal Intelligencer

Since there is almost no way to force a lump sum settlement in the workers' compensation arena, the most effective way to achieve such a result is through convincing the defendants that they will save money in the long run by settling the case. It is really that simple.

By Christian Petrucci

6 minute read

April 28, 2023 | The Legal Intelligencer

While the original goal was to return to the "old normal" as soon as possible, complete with live hearing, in-person doctors depositions and even some actual paper, it seems that attorneys and judges alike have grown increasingly comfortable with the "new normal." A bit of caution is warranted, however, in letting this new normal degrade the practice.

By Christian Petrucci

6 minute read

April 04, 2023 | The Legal Intelligencer

The issues framed by the court, in turn, will require the court to revisit Duffey v. Workers' Compensation Appeal Board (Trola-Dyne), which addressed whether an IRE physician can consider injuries and disabilities not formally accepted by the employer when allocating a whole body impairment percentage. This seemingly innocuous framing of the issues may signal a greater motive.

By Christian Petrucci

7 minute read

January 27, 2023 | The Legal Intelligencer

The court's decision was a simple one. It was unwilling to legislate from the bench. The judges rightly felt constrained to merely interpret law and not impose a policy preference, thereby creating law out of whole cloth, even if "justice" screamed for the opposite result.

By Christian Petrucci

6 minute read