Author: Hannah Teig
New Medical Services Rules Proposed by the OR WCD
On February 19, 2025, the WCD is holding a hearing to propose amendments to several medical services rules in OAR 436-009, 436-010, and 436-015. Many…
Oregon Court of Appeals Upholds Nava Rule
In Nava v. SAIF, 333 Or App 196 (2024), claimant sought judicial review of the Board’s denial of penalty and attorney fees under ORS 656.262(11)(a)…
Pregnant Workers Fairness Act- What to Know
What is it? The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) went into effect on June 27, 2023. The PWFA is a federal law that expands existing…
COVID-19 Era Amendment to the Oregon Equal Pay Act to Become Permanent?
Under the current version of the Oregon Equal Pay Act, employers are prohibited from paying an employee a higher rate than a coworker for similar…
Washington State Requiring Salary Transparency on Job Postings Effective January 1, 2023
On January 1, 2023, RCW 49.58.110 goes into effect. This law addresses salary transparency in job postings for certain Washington State employers. In November 2022,…
Oregon Annual Adjustment to Maximum Attorney Fees Effective July 1, 2022
It’s that time of year again, the Oregon Workers’ Compensation Board published the annual adjustment to attorney fees awarded under ORS 656.262(11)(a); ORS 656.262(14)(a); and…
Oregon Employment Department Finds Vaccine Mandate for Remote Workers Reasonable
The Oregon Employment Department recently denied a former Nike employee’s unemployment benefit application in February 2022. The worker, who worked remotely, was fired for failing…
Potential Changes to Oregon Time Loss Rules Coming?
The Workers’ Compensation Section of the Oregon Trial Lawyers Association (OTLA) is currently in the process of drafting a bill with proposed changes to ORS…
On remand from the Supreme Court, Oregon’s Workers’ Compensation Board issues decision addressing whether a referral for a noncompensable condition must be covered under a claim
Courts have made clear that pursuant to ORS 656.245(1), employers are required to pay for “medical services for conditions caused in material part by the…
Tips and Tricks for Independent Medical Exams (IMEs)
Independent medical examinations (IMEs) are a great tool for claims examiners to use in processing at the beginning, middle, and end of claim. They are…
Court of Appeals reconsiders Meyers v. SAIF in light of the Supreme Court’s opinion in Gadalean
Meyers v. SAIF has been a long time coming– the case has been on appeal since 2013, traveling all the way up to the Oregon…
The Oregon Court of Appeals doubles down on the two-prong Roseburg Forest test making it easier for a presumptively responsible employer to shift responsibility
In April 2020, the Court of Appeals issued a significant decision regarding responsibility cases. In NAES Corporation v. SCI 3.2, Inc., 303 Or. App. 684…
