Tennessee Workers' Compensation Handbook 4th Edition

 Now fully updated and edited for 2011 and beyond, Tennessee Workers' Compensation Handbook, 4th Edition,gives clear, authoritative guidance that will help you master event the most challenging Tennessee workers’ comp issues.

(See your full Table of Contents below.)

What do you do once an employee has filed a claim? What are your workers' compensation obligations? What happens when a lawsuit is filed?

You'll get fast answers whenever you need to:

• Determine the compensability of an employee’s injury
• Stay on top of developments in a benefit review conference
• Decrease disability leave time and workers’ comp premiums
• Set up and manage return-to-work programs
• Find Tennessee workers’ comp case cites
• Get the most for your clients under Tennessee workers’ comp law
• Minimize liability for employee injuries
• Make a legal determination based on prior case law
• Interpret and implement medical restrictions

 
FREE BONUS CD - Get all the workers’ comp forms you need—right on your PC— including:

• Tennessee Employers First Report of Injury
• Medical Waiver and Consent
• Request for BRC
• Application for MIR
• C-32 Form
• And all the others...

Table of Contents

The Law in Tennessee:

• History and Purpose
• Statutory Construction
  -The Requirement of Equitable Interpretation
  -Application of the Rule
• Rule of Exclusivity
  -Application of the Rule
  -Limitations on the Rule

Coverage Issues:

• Employer-Employee Relationships
  -The Definition of Employee
  -The Definition of Employer
  -Contract of Hire
• Exemptions to Coverage
  -Common Carriers
  -Casual Employees
  -Domestic Servants and Farm or Agricultural Laborers
  -Businesses with Fewer Than Five Employees
  -Governmental Entities
  -Volunteer Ski Patrol Persons
• Special Employment Relationships
  -Dual and Joint Employment
  -Loaned Employees
  -Independent Contractors
  -Statutory Employers
  -Individuals Engaged in Construction Industry
  -Coverage by Agreement

Compensable Injuries:

• Injury by Accident
  -“Arising Out of” Employment
  -“In the Course of” Employment
• Particular Applications
  -Going to and from Work
  -Traveling Employees
  -Exposure to Elements
  -Personal Comfort Activities
  -Acts of God"
  -Horseplay"
  -Meal and Break Periods
  -Recreational Activities
  -Emergencies
  -Assaults
  -Idiopathic Injuries
  -Telecommuters

Specific Injuries and Medical Issues:

• Proof of Medical Causation -- Generally
  -Proof of Permanency
  -Gradual Injuries
  -Heart Attacks and Strokes
  -Psychological and Emotional Injuries
  -Hernias
  -Aggravation of Preexisting Conditions
  -Last Injurious Injury Rule -- Successive Employers and Insurance Carriers
  -Subsequent Intervening Causes

Occupational Diseases:

• Statutory Requirements
• Distinguished from Injury by Accident
• Aggravation of Preexisting Conditions or Diseases
• Last Injurious Exposure Rule -- Successive Employers and Insurance Carriers
• Notice of Contraction
• Statute of Limitations
• Application to Federal Black Lung Benefits

Medical Benefits:

• Employer’s Rights and Obligations
  -Providing the Panel
  -Expenses
  -Emergency Treatment
  -Failure to Provide the Panel
  -Future Medical Treatment
  -Penalties
• Employer’s Right to Independent Medical Evaluation
• Employee’s Rights and Obligations
• Physician’s Obligations
• Records and Reports
• Litigation
• Fees and Expenses
  -Reasonableness of Services and Charges
  -Resolution of Disputes
  -Case Management Requirements
• Confidentiality of Medical Information and Medical Records

Disability Benefits:

• The Definition of “Maximum Weekly Benefit” and “Average Weekly Wage”
  -Maximum Weekly Benefit
  -Minimum Weekly Benefit
  -Average Weekly Wage
• Temporary Total Disability
  -Generally
  -The Period of Disability
  -Maximum Medical Improvement/Ability to Return to Work
  -State Filing Requirements
  -Resolving Disputes
  -Enforcement of Penalties
  -Interaction of Temporary Disability and Unemployment Compensation
• Temporary Partial Disability
• Permanent Partial Disability
  -Scheduled Injuries
  -Body As a Whole Injuries
  -Statutory Multipliers
• Permanent Total Disability
  -Generally
  -Period of Disability
  -Reduction of the Award
  -Reconsideration of Permanent Total Disability Status
• Relationship to Death Claim
• Maximum Total Benefit
• Set-Offs

Death Benefits:

• Presumed Dependency
• Actual Dependency
• Partial Dependency
• Distribution of Benefits
• Modification and Termination of Benefits

Second Injury Fund:

• Purpose and Policy
• Application and Apportionment
  -Second Injury Fund Liability under TCA § 50-6-208(a)
  -Second Injury Fund Liability under TCA § 50-6-208(b)
• Procedures and General Considerations in Claims Against the Second Injury Fund

Claims and Defenses:

• Notice of Injury
  -Statutory Requirements
  -Sufficiency of Notice
  -Timeliness of Notice
  -Reasonable Delay or Excuse
  -Waiver and Estoppel
• Statute of Limitations
  -Statutory Requirements
  -Tolling the Statute
  -Reasonable Delay or Excuse
  -Waiver and Estoppel
  - Second Injury Fund
• Willful Misconduct
• Intentional Self-Inflicted Injury
• Intoxication or Illegal Drug Use
• Willful Failure to Use a Safety Device
• Willful Failure to Perform a DutyRequired by Law
• Recreational Activities
• Misrepresentation
• Unavailable Defenses

Subrogation and Third Party Actions:
 

• Subrogation Liens
• Employer’s Credit
• Attorney’s Fees
• Limitations of Actions
• Actions by Employer Against Third Party
• Third-Party Claims Against Employer
  -In General
  -What Is a “Third Party”?
  -Exceptions to Employer Immunity

Practice and Procedure:

• Jurisdiction
  -Extra-Territorial Jurisdiction
  -Election of Remedies
• Filing Claims for Permanent Disability
• Venue
• Settlements
  -Court Approval
  -Department of Labor Approval
• Benefit Review Procedures
  -Generally
  -Initiating the Procedure
  -Documents
  -Timing
  -Conference Procedures
  -Post-Conference Procedures
  -Request for Administrative Review
  -Exhaustion of Benefit Review Process
  -Discovery
• Evidence and Burden of Proof
  -Generally
  -Medical Testimony and Records
  -Vocational Disability
  -Affirmative Defenses
  -Summary Judgment
• Attorney’s Fees and Costs
• Judgments
  -Modifications, Reconsideration, and Reopening of Awards
  -Assignment of Benefits
  -Interest
  -Refund of Benefits Pursuant to Workers’ Compensation Specialist’s Order
  -Evidence of Workers’ Compensation Specialist’s Order
• Lump Sum Awards
• Appellate Review

Insurance Coverage and Related Issues:

• Coverage Requirements and Penalties
  -Generally
  -Certificate of Compliance
  -Policy Provisions
  -Premiums and Credits
  -Penalties
• Claims Management Regulations
  -Generally
  -Claim Reporting
  -Acceptance or Denial of Claim
  -Claim Investigation
  -Benefit Payments
  -Settlement
  -Penalties
• Safety Committees and Grants
• Workers’ Compensation Fraud Act
  -Generally
  -Remedies and Penalties
  -Disclosure of Information
  -Anti-Fraud Plans
• Drug-Free Workplace Programs
  -Generally
  -Notice and Policy Provisions
  -Types of Testing and Related Issues
  -Testing Procedures
  -Important Miscellaneous Testing Provisions
  -Confidentiality
  -Training

Interaction of Tennessee Workers' Compensation Law and Employment Laws:

• Overview of Pertinent Employment Laws
  -Overview of the FMLA
  -Overview of the Americans with Disabilities Act
• Interplay Between Definitions
  -Definitions of Disability
  -Definition of Essential Functions
• Interplay in the Pre-Employment Process
  -The Pre-Offer Phase
  -The Post-Offer Phase
• Interplay Between Attendance and Leave Issues
  -Interaction of Workers’ Compensation and FMLA Leave
  -Interaction of FMLA and ADA Leave
  -Interaction of ADA and Workers’ Compensation Leave
  -Interplay Between Return-to-Work and Reinstatement Issues
  -Fitness-for-Duty Certifications
  -Reasonable Accommodation
  -Reinstatement
• Interplay in Termination Issues
  -Under FMLA and ADA
  -Under Workers’ Compensation