State News : Minnesota

NWCDN is a network of law firms dedicated to protecting employers in workers’ compensation claims.


NWCDN Members regularly post articles and summary judgements in workers’ compensations law in your state.  


Select a state from the dropdown menu below to scroll through the state specific archives for updates and opinions on various workers’ compensation laws in your state.


Contact information for NWCDN members is also located on the state specific links in the event you have additional questions or your company is seeking a workers’ compensation lawyer in your state.


Minnesota

Heacox Hartman

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  651-222-2922

  651-222-2066

We are please to announce that Cousineau, Waldhauser & Kieselbach has been selected as a Tier 1 law firm by “Best Law Firms”.  Six of the attorneys at CWK have been selected to be listed in “Best Lawyers in America”.

Jim Waldhauser, Tom Kieselbach, Mark Kleinschmidt, Richard Schmidt, Jennifer Fitzgerald, and Tom Coleman have been selected for inclusion in the 2018 Guide to Best Lawyers in America.

Best Lawyers and Best Law Firms have collaborated with U.S. News and World Report to evaluate attorneys and law firms throughout the world. The attorneys and law firms are selected for inclusion by peers for their responsiveness, integrity, and expertise.

Whitney Teel prepared a chapter in “Workers’ Compensation Emerging Issues Analysis”, 2017 edition. Whitney analyzed the 2017 trends and developments in Minnesota Workers’ Compensation law.

 The Co-editors-in-chief are Thomas A Robinson of LexisNexis and the National Workers’ Compensation Defense Network (NWCDN). CWK is the Minnesota representative for NWCDN.

 This is an excellent book which is an essential tool for attorneys, risk managers, and insurance professionals. The book is a reference guide to issues and cases as well as a 50 state survey of trends and developments.

 You can purchase this tool here http://www.lexisnexis.com/wcrisk or by calling 1-800-223-1940 (mention WCRisk to receive a discount).

Julie D. Halvorson v. B&F Fastener Supply, A16-0920 (Minn. September 20, 2017)   

The Minnesota Supreme Court affirmed a decision by the Workers’ Compensation Court of Appeals (WCCA) and held that an employer may only terminate an employee’s rehabilitation benefits where “good cause” is shown.

The facts of the case were undisputed. Julie Halvorson (“Employee”) sustained a work-related injury to her right elbow and both knees working for B&F Fastener Supply. A compensation judge awarded workers’ compensation benefits including rehabilitation services, which B&F and their workers’ compensation insurance carrier paid. The Employee eventually found a part-time job with another employer, after which B&F filed a request with the Workers’ Compensation Division of the Department of Labor and Industry to terminate rehabilitation services. The request stated that the Employee was no longer a “qualified employee” entitled to rehabilitation benefits as she had found “suitable gainful employment.” The request was denied and a formal hearing before a compensation judge was requested. The compensation judge granted the request to terminate rehabilitation benefits, noting that the Employee was no longer a “qualified employee” due to her part-time employment.

The Employee appealed to the WCCA, who reversed, but declined to specifically determine whether Employee had “suitable gainful employment” or if she continued to be a “qualified employee.” Instead, the WCCA held that “every request to terminate rehabilitation services is subject to the ‘good cause’ standard in Minn. Stat § 176.102, subd. 8(a), and Minn. R. 5220.0510, subp.5.”Halvorson v. B&F Fastener Supply, No. WC15-5869, 2016 WL 321720 (Minn. WCCA May 9, 2016). Due to the fact that the compensation judge improperly relied on the definitions in Minn. R. 5220.0100, subps. 22, 34, and B&F electing not to have their request to terminate rehabilitation benefits evaluated using the “good cause” standard, the WCCA determined that B&F had wrongfully terminated the Employee’s rehabilitation benefits. The Employer and Insurer appealed to the Minnesota Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court affirmed the WCCA’s decision, holding that Minn. Stat. § 176.102, subd. 8(a) specifically requires “a showing of good cause” in addition to filing the request to suspend, terminate, or alter rehabilitation benefits. There are five enumerated reasons considered “good cause” in the statue: (1) physical injury that prevents the employee from pursuing the rehabilitation plan; (2) employee’s performance indicates the rehabilitation plan will not be completed successfully; (3) the employee does not cooperate with the rehabilitation plan; (4) the plan or its administration is substantially inadequate to achieve the objectives of the plan; (5) the employee is unlikely to benefit from additional rehabilitation. However, the Court also stated that these five reasons are not an exclusive list of ways to show “good cause”

Going forward, this means that when an employer, insurer, employee, or the Commissioner of Labor and Industry request to suspend, terminate, or alter rehabilitation benefits, a showing of “good cause” must be included in the request.

The full decision can be found here: https://mn.gov/law-library-stat/archive/supct/2017/OPA160920-092017.pdf

This summary was prepared by Associate Attorney, Scott G. Ferriss.

Cousineau, Waldhauser, & Kieselbach attorney Whitney Teel attended and presented at the Larson’s Annual Advisory Board Meeting on Minnesota’s workers’ compensation trends for 2017. The Advisory Board consists of one lawyer from each state. Thomas Kieselbach has been a member of Larson’s Advisory Board for years, advising all members on Minnesota workers’ compensation law.

Whitney presented on three significant Minnesota Supreme Court cases Kubis,Hohlt, and Sanchez. The Sanchez decision received nationwide attention for the emerging issues intersecting employment, workers’ compensation and immigration law. Lexis Nexus listed theSanchez case as one of the top 10 workers' compensation cases for 2017. 

Whitney has also prepared the Minnesota submission for the Lexis Workers’ Compensation Emerging Analysisbook that will be published later this year.

Natalie Lund will be lecturing at the 2017 Workers’ Compensation Deskbook seminaron December 1, 2017 sponsored by Minnesota CLE. Her topic will be Attorney Ethics.

The Deskbook seminar is an annual event. All key cases and developments over the past year will be covered. This is the premier Minnesota workers compensation seminar.

We congratulate Natalie for being selected as a speaker.

Cousineau, Waldhauser, & Kieselbach is proud to welcome two new Associate Attorneys to the firm. Scott Ferriss and Bryan Wachter will be great additions to the team. See below for their biographies.

Scott Ferriss

Prior to joining Cousineau Waldhauser, & Kieselbach, Scott worked in E-discovery. During law school, Scott was a legal extern at the Minnesota Department of Transportation Chief Counsel’s Office and at a large health insurance company in the government programs compliance department. His externship work included legal research, drafting memoranda, and ensuring compliance with government audits.

In his previous career, Scott served as Legislative Assistant to a United States Congressman in Washington, DC covering legislative issues that included, transportation, education, environment, healthcare, and telecommunications. After nearly five years of working for the Congressman, Scott and his then betrothed, Kristen, decided to go to law school. He does not recommend planning a wedding during the first year of law school.

Scott is passionate about the game of golf, railroads, and The Beatles. When he is not golfing, he enjoys spending time with his wife and two cats, Ringo and Eleanor Rigby. 

Bryan Wachter

Prior to joining Cousineau, Waldhauser, & Kieselbach, Bryan was a law clerk to the Honorable Mike Furnstahl, Referee of District Court, Fourth Judicial District, Minnesota. He performed legal research, wrote memoranda, recommended decisions, and drafted orders for the Court.

While in law school, Bryan served as a law clerk at Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid in the consumer division and worked as a research assistant under Professor Neil Hamilton in the development of the American Bar Association publication “Roadmap: The Law Student’s Guide to Preparing and Executing a Successful Plan for Employment.”

Outside of work, Bryan enjoys staying active and spending time with his wife and two dogs. He is an avid reader, sports fan, and music fan.  


Cousineau, Waldhauser, & Kieselbach is proud to be the Minnesota representative for the National Workers’ Compensation Network (NWCDN). The NWCDN is a network of law firms from 45 states dedicated to protecting and representing employers and insurers in workers’ compensation cases.

NWCDN's annual seminar will be held on October 19, 2017 at the Ritz-Carlton Buckhead, 3434 Peachtree Road NE, Atlanta GA. The seminar is open to clients of NWCDN member firms. The cocktail party will be held on October 18, 2017.

Below is a link to the NWCDN website where you can register. There is no cost for the conference and cocktail party. We hope you can attend.

http://www.nwcdn.com/


The College of Workers’ Compensation Lawyers was established to honor attorneys who have distinguished themselves in the area of workers’ compensation.     

Thomas Kieselbach attended CWCL's annual board meeting which was held on August 18, 2017 at the Union League Club of Chicago.

CWCL’s annual induction ceremony for new Fellows will be held in Nashville on March 3, 2018 in conjunction with the American Bar Association annual Workers’ Compensation seminar.

http://www.cwclawyers.org/

Tom Coleman, Jennifer Fitzgerald, Tom Kieselbach, Mark Kleinschmidt, Richard Schmidt and Jim Waldhauser have been selected for inclusion in the 2018 Edition of Best Lawyers in America.

For more than 30 years Best Lawyers has published premier guides for the legal profession recognizing talent throughout the word. Currently, lawyers in over 70 countries are recognized. Inclusion in Best Lawyers is based solely upon peer review.

We congratulate our Best Lawyers for their hard work and dedication to our clients.

The Minnesota Supreme Court reversed a decision by the WCCA, and held that the WCCA erred when it found that an expert opinion lacked adequate foundation.

In this case, Debra Mattick (“Employee”) sustained a non-work-related injury to her right ankle in 2000. She underwent two surgeries, and eventually was able to engage in recreational activities including sand volleyball and biking. She was diagnosed with post-traumatic arthritis, and had periodic pain. She returned to work as a cake decorator at Hy-Vee in 2001, working 40-45 hours per week. In 2004, the Employee tripped over a pallet while working at Hy-Vee and twisted her right ankle. She filed a workers’ compensation claim seeking reimbursement for an ankle-fusion surgery. At the Hearing, the compensation judge denied the Employee’s claim for surgery and found that the injury was temporary and had fully resolved. The judge relied on the expert opinion of Dr. Fey and concluded that neither the Employee’s medical records nor the opinions of her treating physicians supported her claim.

The case was appealed to the WCCA, which reversed the compensation judge’s decision and concluded that Dr. Fey’s report lacked adequate factual foundation. The WCCA found that Dr. Fey’s report was suspect, including his discussion of the Employee’s arthritis condition and ankle sprain, and well as his failure to note a 10-year gap in the Employee’s symptoms. Due to this, they found the report to be lacking in adequate foundation.

The Minnesota Supreme Court reversed the WCCA’s decision and reinstated the findings of the compensation judge. The Supreme Court noted that an expert opinion lacks foundation when (1) the opinion does not include the facts and/or data upon which the expert relied in forming the opinion, (2) it does not explain the basis for the opinion, or (3) the facts assumed by the expert in rendering an opinion are not supported by the evidence. Hudson v. Trillium Staffing, 2017 WL 2458132 (Minn. June 7, 2017). The Supreme Court, however, analyzed Dr. Fey’s report based on these factors and found that the report clearly recounted and analyzed the specifics of the Employee’s injuries before opining on the potential aggravation of her arthritis in her ankle, and it was adequately supported by factual foundation. A few statements in the report taken out of context is not enough to discredit the entire report. In conclusion, the Supreme Court found that the WCCA erred, and that the compensation judge properly relied on Dr. Fey’s report.

As the takeaway, the Minnesota Supreme Court reiterated the WCCA’s appellate standard of review under Hengemuhle for the past three decades: the WCCA exceeds its scope of review when it rejects a Compensation Judge’s findings that are supported by substantial evidence and substitutes its own findings.

The case Mattick v. Hy-Vee Foods Stores, A16-1802 and can be found here: http://www.mncourts.gov/mncourtsgov/media/Appellate/Supreme%20Court/Standard%20Opinions/OPA161802-071217.pdf

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