IN THIS ISSUE

SEXUAL ASSAULT IN THE WORKPLACE
Joju Thomas, Esquire and Richard Gash, Esquire

A CASE OF FIRST IMPRESSION IN PENNSYLVANIA

Louis Hockman, Esquire and Lawrence M. Kelly, Esquire

DELINEATING THE DISPARATE REQUIREMENTS OF PRESUIT NOTICE AND EXPERT CORROBORATION IN FLORIDA MEDICAL NEGLIGENCE CLAIMS

Barbara S. Diamond, Esquire and Scott D. Kirschbaum, Esquire

BORDER WARS: ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION

A. Blackwell Stieglitz, Esquire & Gina E. Romanik, Esquire

PRACTICAL TIPS FOR NEW JERSEY W.C. PRACTICE
Joel Kotler, Esquire and Kimberly Jubanyik, Esquire

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SEXUAL ASSAULT IN THE WORKPLACE

By Joju Thomas, Esquire and Richard Gash, Esquire

In recent years, sexual assault claims have increasingly found their way into the New York workers' compensation system. While one is inherently compassionate toward the victim of such an assault, an insurance carrier should still put aside their sympathies and impose a dispassionate analysis of the facts underlying the claim. The liability that might be incurred in such a claim warrants a thorough and diligent investigation, rather than a quick and emotional decision on the issue of compensability. In order for a sexual assault to be considered work-related in New York State, the motivation for the assault must be work-related and the nature of the employment must have created a dangerous or hazardous condition.

The following situation came before a workers' compensation carrier. The claimant was an employee of Hess Gas Stations. In her position, the claimant undertook various duties for her employer, including cleaning the bathrooms. The individual alleged to have committed the sexual assault is a truck driver. The truck driver was a regular customer and was familiar to the claimant. The carrier advised that their investigation revealed that the claimant's fellow employees believed that the claimant and this truck driver were on "friendly" terms.

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	VOLUME 15 June 2006