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The Functional Operation Of Workers’ Compensation Covid Presumptions, Michael C. Duff
The Functional Operation Of Workers’ Compensation Covid Presumptions, Michael C. Duff
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During 2020, a number of U.S. states implemented workers' compensation COVID-19 presumptions. This short informal paper defines and explains legal presumptions generally and then discusses the workers' compensation presumptions. The paper contends that at this juncture it is not clear whether states intended to enact "Thayer-Wigmore" or "Morgan" presumptions; but if they operate as Thayer-Wigmore presumptions they will not do workers' compensation claimants much good in the context of non-jury proceedings presided over by administrative law judges.
A Tale Of Two Standards: Why Wyoming Courts Should Apply The Actual Substantial Evidence Standard When Reviewing Workers’ Compensation Cases, Michael C. Duff
A Tale Of Two Standards: Why Wyoming Courts Should Apply The Actual Substantial Evidence Standard When Reviewing Workers’ Compensation Cases, Michael C. Duff
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In Wyoming, as in almost all states, facts in contested workers’ compensation cases are developed within an administrative agency. When agency factual findings are challenged in court, the level of judicial deference applied to the agency is important and may be outcome determinative. Wyoming courts claim to apply the “substantial evidence” standard of review, often expressed as evidence that a “reasonable mind could accept” as supporting an agency determination. The Wyoming Supreme Court, however, also sometimes upholds workers’ compensation agency decisions that are deemed “not contrary to the overwhelming weight of the evidence.” It is unclear whether this latter formulation …
Sealed Documents To Prevent “Perfectly Legitimate” Review And Dissemination Of Privileged Confidential Information, Bridget Hoy, Dana M. Malkus
Sealed Documents To Prevent “Perfectly Legitimate” Review And Dissemination Of Privileged Confidential Information, Bridget Hoy, Dana M. Malkus
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A recent federal district court case serves as a reminder that when filing documents through an electronic filing system, the information contained in the documents is immediately available to anyone “through perfectly legitimate means: by reading a public filing.” The January 6, 2009 opinion in E-Smart Technologies, Inc., et al. v. Wayne Drizin, et al., 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 272 (N.D. Ca Jan. 6, 2009), demonstrates that when caution is not taken at the onset to seal documents that contain privileged or confidential information, there might be little recourse for immediate distribution of information that one might later determine …
Embracing Paradox: Three Problems The Nlrb Must Confront To Resist Further Erosion Of Labor Rights In The Expanding Immigrant Workplace, Michael C. Duff
Embracing Paradox: Three Problems The Nlrb Must Confront To Resist Further Erosion Of Labor Rights In The Expanding Immigrant Workplace, Michael C. Duff
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This article discusses the Supreme Court's 2002 Hoffman Plastic Compounds opinion, normally considered in terms of its social justice ramifications, from the different perspective of NLRB attorneys tasked with pursuing enforcement of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) under the conceptually (and practically) odd rubric that some NLRA employees (unauthorized workers) have no remedy under the NLRA. The article focuses on three problems evincing paradox. First, NLRB attorneys prosecuting cases involving these workers will probably gain knowledge of unlawful background immigration conduct. To what extent must the attorneys disclose it, and to whom? Second, NLRB attorneys are extraordinarily reliant on …
Detailing Daubert, The Hon. E Richard Webber, Dana M. Malkus
Detailing Daubert, The Hon. E Richard Webber, Dana M. Malkus
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When Justice Blackmun wrote Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals, 509 U.S. 579 (1993), the assignment was to reconcile the standards governing the admissibility of expert testimony with Federal Rule of Evidence 702. As Justice Blackmun recognized, Frye v. United States, 293 F. 1013 (D.C. Cir. 1923), had long served as the polestar for determining the admissibility of expert testimony in litigation. Although the test developed by the Frye court was ultimately rejected when the Supreme Court announced new rules regarding the admissibility of expert testimony, the Frye court’s recognition of the purpose behind admitting expert testimony remains instructional: …
The Allure And Danger Of Practicing Law As Taxonomy, Marcia L. Mccormick
The Allure And Danger Of Practicing Law As Taxonomy, Marcia L. Mccormick
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In this article, I hope to contribute to the ongoing debate on how our society treats the problem of discrimination. Many scholars have criticized the types of antidiscrimination statutes we have enacted as well as the ways in which the courts have interpreted those laws. While I agree with many of these critiques, rather than tackle those very large issues at the outset, I focus on the test the courts currently use to evaluate the evidence to determine whether an inference can be made that discrimination has occurred. I argue that lawyers and courts have become so caught up in …