PODCAST · government
Workers Comp Matters
by Legal Talk Network
Workers Comp Matters is hosted by Attorney Alan S. Pierce, the only Legal Talk Network program that focuses entirely on the people and the law in workers compensation cases. Nationally recognized Trial Attorney, expert and author, Alan S. Pierce is a leader committed to making a difference when workers comp matters.
Episodes
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Marking 25 Years Since 9/11: Revisiting Our Discussion With Special Master Ken Feinberg
It’s been 25 years since 9/11. In this special episode, we revisit our conversation with Kenneth Feinberg, the architect of the federal compensation plan for victims and their families. As he asks in his book on the subject, “what’s life worth?” Feinberg is an internationally known attorney who…
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Way Down South: Every State Is Different. The View From Alabama.
Let’s go way down south to Alabama. As we know, Workers’ Compensation systems can vary from state to state. In this episode, we’ll explore the Alabama system with Birmingham-based Workers’ Comp attorney David Nomberg, a partner in the Nomberg Law Firm. In Alabama, the system operates uniquely as...
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Workplace and Joint Replacement: What’s On-The-Job and What’s Just Aging?
Let’s talk about work-related joint injuries and replacements. Sebastian Negrusa, Ph.D., joins Judson and Alan to share the Workers’ Compensation Research Institute’s (WCRI) new report, “Recent Trends in Joint Replacement Among Workers’ Compensation Claims.” While back injuries usually come to…
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Challenging the Way We Think About “Exclusive Remedy”.
In this fascinating episode, explore how the Exclusive Remedy Rule works in the real and evolving world of Workers’ Compensation law. A recent case in Washington State, the Teela Bauer case, challenges the traditional exchange of employer civil protections for worker compensation in the case of...
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Collateral Damage: The Federal Workers’ Injury Comp Risk in a Government Shutdown
Sometimes the work done by law students can surprise everyone. This episode may shock you. Continuing a tradition, we honor the annual winner of the John F. Burton Jr. College of Workers’ Compensation Lawyers Law Student Writing competition. This year, guest Roxanne Mosley is the winner with her...
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Exploding Glue and Mermaid Dresses: When Workers’ Comp Gets Weird
It’s never funny when a worker is injured on the job, but some cases do raise eyebrows. In their annual look into some “unusual” Workers’ Comp cases, Jud and Alan uncover some incidents that challenged the system, some by just being so weird. Where did my ladder go? A worker on a rooftop was…
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Leveraging Tech and AI (With a Compassion) in Workers’ Comp Management
With the rise of artificial intelligence, it makes sense to think about the use of AI analytics in Workers’ Compensation case outcome management. What types of tools lead to efficient claim management, including shorter claim durations and better outcomes? Guest Ryan Murphy has spent his career...
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The “Magellans” Navigating Workers’ Comp Care: Nursing Case Managers
Recovering from a workplace injury takes time, patience, and in many instances, professional case management. Guests Cindy Bourbeau and Annie Barach with Massachusetts-based Medical and Life Care Consulting Services explain how nursing case management professionals help injured workers through...
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Workplace Mental Health: Employee/Employer Perspectives Can Differ.
Mental health plays a big role in workplace efficiency and safety, but it seems employers and employees view the topic differently. Guest Joseph Toppe, a longtime journalist and managing editor of the insurance news website PropertyCasualty360.com shares an interesting study from Pie Insurance.…
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“Many ills may strike, but one must answer.” Medical Causation Standards in Workers' Compensation Claims
Causation and Workers’ Compensation? It’s complicated, and it varies by state. The concept is that to qualify for Workers’ Comp there must be a direct link between the injury (or illness) and the workplace. But how do you prove what’s a direct result of the workplace and what was the result of a...
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Workers’ Comp, Politics, and the Economy: A Concerning Mix
It’s not you, the Workers’ Compensation system has changed over time, and not always for the best. Guest Christopher Godfrey, with a long career in Workers’ Comp, including his current role as research director at the Workers' Injury Law & Advocacy Group (WILAG) and a lengthy stint running the...
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A Teacher Injured in a School Shooting: When Is the School Responsible?
Workers’ Compensation has traditionally been a bargain, a “deal” workers and employers agree to. Workers injured on the job are compensated quickly and in exchange they don’t sue their employers. But when it came to a Virginia school teacher shot and seriously injured by a young student, was…
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When You’re Hot, You’re Hot: The Impact of Heat on Workplace Injuries
Hot enough for ya? Guest Sebastian Negrusa Ph.D. is a researcher at the Workers’ Compensation Research Institute (WCRI) and the co-author of the recent WCRI study “Impact of Excessive Heat on the Frequency of Work-Related Injuries.” What role does excessive heat in the workplace play in employee...
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First Responders and Workers’ Comp, Understanding Workplace Injuries and PTSD
What happens when a first responder is hurt on the job or suffers from job-related post-traumatic stress? We depend on these heroes among us, always there when we need them most. But many must depend on Workers’ Comp professionals to help them when they are injured. Guest Paolo Longo is a partner...
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Exclusive Remedy: The “Great Bargain” (and the Exceptions)
Let’s talk about the “exclusive remedy,” what it means, why Workers’ Comp matters, and the exceptions. The concept of exclusive remedy is based on the principle that in exchange for care and benefits, a worker injured on the job may surrender some options for additional remedies. If you’re…
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When Undocumented Immigrants Are Hurt at Work
These are unprecedented times for the rights of immigrant workers in the United States. The current political climate has thrown a wrench into the Workers’ Compensation system when it comes to workers without documentation. Understanding the system can help. Guest Enrique Flores is the founder of...
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More “Strange but True” Workers’ Comp Cases (and What They Teach Us)
Hosts Alan and Judson Pierce reflect on nearly two decades of the Workers Comp Matters podcast with an examination of unusual or bizarre claims and cases. A reminder, while some of these cases may have puzzling or humorous elements on their face, it’s never funny when a person is hurt. We may...
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Sprain? Strain? Subluxation? Medical Insights That Can Help Attorneys.
Guest Dr. Peter Yeh is an orthopedic surgeon with more than 15 years in medicine treating shoulder, upper arm, and knee issues. The stuff that happens at the job. When it comes to injured workers, they’re not that much different than an injured athlete. In both cases, the things they do can be a...
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Enhancing Your Argument With Storytelling
Being a good lawyer is a lot about great storytelling. Unfortunately, that’s often not taught in law school. Facts build the case, but effective storytelling wins the case. Guest Robert Mattson is an experienced corporate communications leader and coach. But his skills go beyond that. He acts in...
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AI May Be Big, But Nothing Replaces People In Workers’ Comp Claims
AI may be changing the Workers’ Compensation insurance industry, but that doesn’t diminish the importance of a personal touch. Guest Michael Kelley leads the HUB International claims adjustment team in New England and explains how bringing cases to a satisfying conclusion for all involved can be…
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Brain Strain: Workplace Psychological Injury Compensation
Guest Michael C. Duff, professor at the St. Louis University School of Law, explores the evolving field of mental health injuries in the Workers’ Comp world. Stress and workplace trauma is real, and recognition of these injuries is developing, but there are still complicating factors. Did…
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New Study Asks if Having a Lawyer Boosts Workers Comp Payments
Guest Bogdan Savych, a senior policy analyst at the Workers’ Compensation Research Institute (WCRI), discusses his new paper, written with David Neumark, entitled “Impact of Attorney Representation on Workers’ Compensation Payments.” WCRI studied the impact of attorney representation when it…
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VA Disability Claims: An Often Overlooked Benefit Source
Our military and public service veterans deserve our best. Guest Alex Dell is a longtime Workers’ Compensation and Veterans Affairs compensation attorney, often representing injured public servants or military veterans. He’s also a former Division One hockey referee. In both roles, Dell explains...
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50 Years In Workers’ Comp: Alan Pierce’s Observations and Reflections
In this special episode, co-host Alan Pierce shares his thoughts on an auspicious occasion, celebrating his 50th year practicing Workers’ Compensation law. Alan’s son and law partner, Judson Pierce, interviews his father. Fifty years of anything is a long time. Alan passed the bar in 1974 and…
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Using AI To Help Both Sides, Adjusters And Injured Workers
How will AI help us help workers injured on the job? What voids will AI help us fill as we work to help people get back to work and life? Treatment authorizations, document delivery, and automation of mundane tasks such as signature acceptance help an injured person get back on the job faster and...
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A New Approach to Workers’ Comp: Being Nice?
Guest Claire C. Muselman’s recent publication in WorkersCompensation.com encourages adjusters to take a new look at Workers’ Compensation’s goals. Maybe we should be less skeptical of workers and show empathy. In other words: Be Nice. We all have biases. Sometimes they get in the way and keep us...
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Alternative Medicine and Workers’ Comp Coverage: A Puzzle.
Let’s talk about alternative medicine and coverage under Workers’ Comp’s hodgepodge of rules. Guest Maya Rashid is a recent graduate of Penn State Law and the winner of the College of Workers’ Compensation Lawyers’ student writing competition with her article “Revitalizing Recovery: Exploring...
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New Insights: How A Worker’s Mental State Influences Injury Recovery
When workers are recovering from a workplace injury, there are psychosocial factors, mental factors, which can impede the recovery from physical injuries. Things such as a worker’s recovery expectations, fear of pushing too hard or performing activities that may restrict the benefits of physical...
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The “Multi-Tentacled Monster:” Repetitive Stress Claims
This episode opens a new topic for the Workers Comp Matters podcast: repetitive stress injuries, sometimes referred to cumulative trauma, acquired on the job. What happens to someone when someone develops a workplace injury, physical or mental, that can’t be traced back to a single, isolated…
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Think You Know Workers’ Comp? The Times, They Are A Changing!
The “times they are a changing” in the world of Workers’ Compensation, a system developed when the relationship between workers and employers were more clearly defined. Guest Emily Spieler is an accomplished author, former professor, practicing attorney, and government official with a career that...
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When Things Get Weird, Volume 2: Unusual Cases of Workers’ Comp
A person getting hurt at the workplace is never funny. But it can be instructional to examine some of the strangest ways people manage to become injured at work. Hear about some “interesting” cases. A schoolteacher whose leg “fell asleep” while he sat in a classroom falls trying to stand up. He...
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Fighting The “HIPAA Police,” Accessing Your Client’s Medical Records
HIPAA, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, is 27 years old. For better or worse, it was designed to protect patients. But in reality, it has also hampered attorneys in their quest for medical records critical to ensuring fair compensation for injured workers. Guest Jared...
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Long COVID And Workers’ Comp, A Deep Dive Into A Real Issue
Did we ever learn a lot during the once-in-a-generation health event that was COVID! Guest Dr. Bogdan Savych of the Workers Comp Research Institute (WCRI) is a policy analyst who is studying the lasting effects of the illness, as well as lingering cases of Long Covid. What is “Long COVID?” How…
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What Is A Workplace Injury When Your Home Is Your Workplace?
Our understanding of work and workplaces may have been forever changed by the COVID pandemic. Many workers today are working from their own homes or conducting meetings by phone during their occasional trip to an office. When you’re working from home and slip and injure yourself in your own...
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How A New Documentary Movie, “Americonned,” Relates To Workers’ Comp
Guest Dave Pederson is the producer of a new film, “Americonned,” that examines how the past few generations of workers have suffered from income inequality and been crushed by big business and its government influence. Wages aren’t keeping up, yet productivity has rocketed, on the backs of the...
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“For Every Wrong, A Remedy?” When A Workplace Event Harms A Family
What about the rights of an injured worker’s spouse and family members after a work-related injury or illness? Guest Michael Duff, law professor, former blue-collar worker, and expert on Workers’ Comp walks us through the California “Kuciemba Case,” a case where an employer may have violated...
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The “F-Word” In Workers’ Comp: Fraud. Not Always The Employer?
Let’s talk about the F-word in Workers’ Compensation: Fraud. Guest Connor Thomson is a second-year law student at Villanova University who won the College of Workers’ Compensation Lawyers John F. Burton Jr. Law Student Writing Competition with his paper “Fight Fire With Fire: The Need For…
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Support That Goes Beyond Lawyers and Doctors: Kind Souls Foundation Lends An Ear
Helping workers and their families get back on their feet after a workplace injury or other workplace-displacing health event takes more than legal aid, insurance, and even doctors. Injured workers are people first, and people have emotional needs. Guest Danielle Troxel is managing director of…
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Medical Marijuana, Your Client, And Who Pays
Marijuana was once fodder for stoner comedies and standup routines. But today, medical marijuana is a serious matter in Workers’ Compensation. Fair compensation, and proper medical treatment, is not always as clear as it should be. Laws evolve by the day, state by state. Guest Jenifer Dana…
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When A Worker Is Injured, So Is The Family: Helping Children Move Forward.
Guest Kathleen Fisher is an accomplished attorney in the field of Workers’ Compensation, but she’s also an active leader of the organization Kids’ Chance, dedicated to supporting the children of workers injured on the job. Kids’ Chance provides scholarships to the children of injured workers.…
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Back To School: Learning To Focus On “Recovery,” Not “Claims”
Guest Robert “Bob” Wilson is a leader at Work Comp College, created to offer a deeper dive into workplace protections for employees. He’s not a lawyer or an academic type, but he’s long held an interest in the programs designed to protect workers and employers. The field of helping workers…
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Settle Down: How Settlements Work in Workers’ Comp Cases
To settle or not to settle, often a question. Our guest, Jim Anderson, is a well-known Workers’ Comp attorney and a leader in the field in Mississippi. His input about “settlements” are respected, and he has led the field in helping both sides reach a solution. The best claim is a closed claim.…
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Urgent Need: Serving First Responders With PTSD
We depend on our first responders – firefighters, cops, emergency room workers – every day. They protect us from harm. But what happens when they need our help? Our guest Robert Wisniewski is a Certified Specialist in Workers’ Compensation law with the Arizona State Bar and a military veteran....
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When Things Get Weird: Fascinating Cases, Different Jurisdictions
A reminder that every case is different. Injuries occur in unusual situations that challenge how we think about Workers’ Compensation and how every state and jurisdiction applies the law differently. The “Skiing Chaperone Case,” is about a teacher who accompanies a school ski club as a chaperone....
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Longshoremen and Workers’ Comp Act — Coverage, Benefits and Compensation
Enjoy a deep dive into the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act with a veteran of the field, guest Norman Cole. The Act is a federal comp provision that covers those who load, unload, and repair ships or work in related fields. It’s a fascinating field that differs from standard state...
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Embrace Your Inner Matlock: “Acting” In The Courtroom
Guest Rachel Bailit is not an attorney, she’s an actor. So why is she a guest on a show about lawyers and legal issues? As an experienced acting teacher – in addition to an accomplished actor in movies, television, and live stage – Bailit specializes in teaching acting skills to public speakers,...
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A Playbook for Tackling Workers’ Comp in Professional Sports
It’s one thing when a shelf stocker slips at work and injures her back. It’s another thing entirely when a professional athlete blows a knee on the football field. Our guest this week is Jonathan Israel, senior partner at the Jacksonville, Florida, law firm RITE where he represents professional...
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Workers’ Comp Medical Fee Schedules: What You Need To Know
Workers’ Compensation is primarily designed to provide two benefits: payroll replacement for injured workers and medical payments to providers. But over the years, the process has become increasingly complicated. Guest Ramona Tanabe is executive vice president and counsel for the Workers’...
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Has the “Great Bargain” Worked? Well … It’s Complicated
Continuing our discussion of the 50th anniversary of the National Commission on State Workmen’s Compensation (as it was called) report. We’ve come a long way, but … it’s complicated. Guest Abbie Hudgens, Administrator of the State of Tennessee Bureau of Workers’ Compensation, shares her thoughts…
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50 Years After a Review of Workplace Protections, Time for Another Look?
July marks the 50th anniversary of the National Commission on State Workmen’s Compensation laws. The system we have in place wasn’t always so. Even after the passage of protections for workers, it took years to develop today’s standards. In 1972, a federal panel released a comprehensive review of...
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
Workers Comp Matters is hosted by Attorney Alan S. Pierce, the only Legal Talk Network program that focuses entirely on the people and the law in workers compensation cases. Nationally recognized Trial Attorney, expert and author, Alan S. Pierce is a leader committed to making a difference when workers comp matters.
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does Workers Comp Matters have?
Workers Comp Matters currently has 170 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is Workers Comp Matters about?
Workers Comp Matters is hosted by Attorney Alan S. Pierce, the only Legal Talk Network program that focuses entirely on the people and the law in workers compensation cases. Nationally recognized Trial Attorney, expert and author, Alan S. Pierce is a leader committed to making a difference when...
How often does Workers Comp Matters release new episodes?
Workers Comp Matters publishes regularly with 170 episodes available. Check the episode list for the typical release schedule.
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You can listen to Workers Comp Matters on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts Workers Comp Matters?
Workers Comp Matters is created and hosted by Legal Talk Network.
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