LOIS Partner Christian Sison and Paralegal Anastasia Hicks-Hunter successfully reduced potential permanent impairment and medical exposure by securing a disallowance of a claimed neck injury in a New York Workers’ Compensation case. The claim involves a claimant driver for a supply chain employer who alleged that he injured his neck when a cart handle broke and caused him to fall. Through cross-examination of the treating physician and presentation of a medical opinion disputing causation, Attorney Sison laid the groundwork for persuasive oral argument.
After testimony concluded, Attorney Sison emphasized that the claimant did not report a neck injury until seeking treatment from a specific physician and omitted any neck complaints to other providers, including the employer’s independent medical examiner. He argued that the absence of initial treatment records undermined any causal link between the accident and the alleged neck injury and further challenged the claimant’s credibility, noting the inconsistency between claiming loss of consciousness and declining hospital care. The Law Judge upheld the position of Attorney Sison and disallowed the neck injury from the claim. As a result of this favorable outcome, Carrier exposure is drastically mitigated.
