LOIS Secures Full Disallowance: No Accident, No Notice, No Causal Relationship

LOIS Associate Hannah Bacon and Paralegal Loriana Diaz obtained a total disallowance in a New York Workers’ Compensation claim pertaining to an alleged orthopedic injury by impugning the Claimant’s credibility and successfully arguing that there was no timely notice, no compensable accident, and no causal relationship between any injuries and employment. Ms. Bacon took extensive testimony from the Claimant, produced a lay witness to testify on behalf of the Employer, and submitted documentation into evidence that rebutted the Claimant’s version of events in order to achieve this result. The Claimant initially stated that he reported the accident to his supervisor on the same day it occurred, but documentation from the Employer revealed that supervisor was terminated just prior to the accident at bar. The Claimant then testified that he reported the accident to two other individuals, as well, but Ms. Bacon was able to discredit this allegation as a mere contrived afterthought so as to satisfy the notice requirement. Ms. Bacon successfully argued that the Claimant’s failure to timely report the alleged accident severely prejudiced the Carrier’s and Employer’s ability to investigate, as many of the individuals no longer worked for the Employer. Moreover, Ms. Bacon noted that when an issue arises as to whether notice was timely provided to the Employer, it is the Claimant’s burden to prove that timely notice was provided, which was not proven. Ms. Bacon also pointed to the lack of contemporaneous medical evidence and the fact that there were no medical reports that predated the start of the Claimant’s new employment to prove that the claim was an afterthought. The Law Judge agreed with Ms. Bacon, disallowed the case, and closed the claim entirely.