What's Hot in Workers' Comp
What’s Hot in Workers’ Comp - News and Results*
What’s Hot in Workers’ Comp, Vol. 30, No. 4, April 2026
April 1, 2026
RESULTS*
Perry Merlo (Harrisburg) successfully obtained a defense decision in a workers’ compensation matter. The claimant alleged she was wrongfully terminated due to a workplace injury, and filed a claim petition demanding $95,000. During testimony, it was revealed that the claimant did not report her alleged work injury until after the employer terminated her for falsifying her time records. Additionally, five employer witnesses testified that the claimant never reported a work injury and was working her full duty job until she was fired for cause. Ultimately, the Workers’ Compensation Judge dismissed the claim petition.
Tony Natale (King of Prussia) obtained a defense verdict involving a claim petition alleging a complex tear of the medial meniscus in the knee after being injured walking down a hallway in the police station. We argued that a medical condition arising during employment is not necessarily related to employment itself. We presented medical evidence from an orthopedic surgeon who found no mechanism of injury other than the claimant being present at the job when symptoms began. Additionally, we presented video evidence of the incident taking place, which the court analyzed, finding no evidence of physical injury. The court concluded that injuries that arise at work are not necessarily work related – a defense verdict that will change the landscape of law.
Tony also successfully defended a claim petition which was denied and dismissed. The claimant alleged a work injury after her chair exploded due to her body habitus, causing her to fall to the ground. She claimed to have sustained various injuries and periods of disability. During a critical cross examination, the claimant’s medical expert admitted that there was no evidence of a work-related injury in the medical records generated nearly one year following the incident. Additionally, the expert admitted that the claimant was capable of full work duty. The court had no choice but to deny and dismiss the claim petition, forming a complete defense verdict.
Eric Thompson (Wilmington) successfully defended a claim before the Delaware Department of Labor Industrial Accident Board. The claimant had a history of respiratory illnesses which she alleged were managed through treatment until she was assigned to work in a specific building by the employer. She alleged that her symptoms became worse as a result of working in the building. The employer had a mold study performed, which showed the existence of mold in various places in the building, but that the mold concentrations were less than those in the external ambient air. Nevertheless, the claimant alleged the mold exposure from the building exacerbated her respiratory conditions. The Industrial Accident Board found our expert to be more credible that the claimant’s, who argued that an employer is strictly liable for exacerbations of conditions of its employees even if it does not know about them. Following a two-day hearing, the board found that the claimant failed to meet her burden of establishing more likely than not her respiratory conditions were caused by exposure to mold in the building, denying her petition for compensation due.
Kacey Wiedt (Harrisburg) and Alana Staniszewski (Pittsburgh) obtained a defense verdict, successfully having claim and penalty petitions denied and dismissed. The claimant alleged a work injury when she tripped over a pallet and fell onto her left knee during the course and scope of her employment. The claimant delayed treatment, first seeking treatment approximately one month after the incident at work. We presented employer witnesses and evidence, establishing that the claimant’s orthopedic issues, including knee surgery, were unrelated to the fall at work. The court agreed, finding that the claimant did not have any symptoms following the incident and that the medical expert we presented showed that the claimant only sustained a contusion to the knee following the incident at work.
Andrew Maffett (Harrisburg) was successful in having a workers’ compensation claim demanding a settlement of $165,000 denied. The claimant filed two claim petitions alleging a work injury involving his cervical spine in September 2022, and a work injury to the lumbar spine in May 2024. The petitions sought payment of full disability benefits from September 2022 to November 2023, partial disability benefits from November 2023 to May 2024, total disability benefits from May 2024 and ongoing, medical bills, and counsel feels. The judge denied the petitions and the claimant was not awarded any workers’ compensation benefits, litigation costs, or attorney fees.
*Prior Results Do Not Guarantee a Similar Outcome
NEWS
Kiara Hartwell has been selected as a 2026 New Jersey Super Lawyer Rising Star for Workers’ Compensation (Mount Laurel). As a Shareholder of the Workers' Compensation Department, Kiara devotes the entirety of her practice to workers' compensation litigation on behalf of employers, insurance carriers and self-insureds. She authors the New Jersey updates for the firm’s monthly newsletter, What's Hot In Workers' Comp, and she has been published in CLM Magazine. Kiara is a member of the New Jersey State Bar Association's Workers' Compensation Executive Committee, a group charged with studying and developing beneficial changes in the administration and procedures pertaining to workers' compensation.
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