Worker's Compensation Law News
The Law with Regards to Minors
Under New Jersey law, an injured worker’s exclusive remedy for the negligence of the employer
or a co-employee is to file a worker’s compensation, as opposed to a civil suit. However,
if the injured worker is a minor, then the New Jersey Workers’ Compensation Act allows the
minor to elect whether he or she wants to file a civil suit against the tort-feasor,
or to simply file a worker’s compensation claim against the employer. Therefore, if
a minor if injured at work, it is important to seek the advice of an attorney to
determine whether to file a civil
claim against the tort-feasor or to file a worker’s compensation claim against the employer.
Worker's Compensation
RINGING EARS AS A RESULT OF WORKPLACE EXPOSURE IS COMPENSABLE
The Appellate Division of the Superior Court of New Jersey, in Schorpp-Replogle v. New Jersey Manufacturers Insurance Co.,
recently affirmed the decision of a worker’s compensation court and held that tinnitus (ringing in the ears) qualifies as a
compensable disability under the New Jersey Worker’s Compensation Statute where the condition: (1) is due in a material degree
to exposure to harmful noise at the workplace; (2) materially impairs the employee’s working ability or is otherwise serious
in extent: and (3) is corroborated by objective medical testing despite the mainly subjective nature of the affliction.
The Appellate Court held that tinnitus can be a separate and distinct injury even in the absence of an accompanying compensable
hearing loss if the tinnitus affects to a material degree a person’s working ability and their ordinary pursuits of life. Again,
in order for tinnitus to be compensable a person’s complaints must be corroborated by objective medical evidence.
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