DEPUTY COMMISSIONERS CONTINUE TO FOLLOW COMMISSIONER’S GUIDANCE IN MARTINEZ V. PAVLICH DESPITE ITS OVERRULING IN POLK COUNTY DISTRICT COURT

There has been much talk regarding an Iowa district court’s reversal of the Workers’ Compensation Commissioner’s finding in Martinez v. Pavlich.  The Commissioner determined that an injured claimant must be compensated based on earning capacity when the claimant...

IOWA DEPUTY COMMISSIONER PROVIDES GUIDANCE ON COMPENSABILITY WHEN AN EMPLOYEE IS INJURED WHILE VIOLATING EMPLOYER’S POLICIES

Goede v. US Xpress, Inc. provides an example on how an injured employee could still receive workers’ compensation benefits even though the employee’s injury resulted from violations of the employer’s company policies. In some circumstances, an employee may be barred...

AN IOWA DEPUTY WORKERS’ COMPENSATION COMMISSIONER INTERPRETS A SHOULDER REPLACEMENT SURGERY AS A BODY AS A WHOLE INJURY

In Bolinger v. Trillium, an Iowa Deputy Workers’ Compensation Commissioner provided guidance as to whether a reverse shoulder replacement surgery is considered an injury to the shoulder or if it extends to the body as a whole. The claimant in Bolinger argued that her...