Bill Text: NY A03694 | 2013-2014 | General Assembly | Introduced

---

Bill Title: Requires employers to present substantial evidence when contesting workers' compensation claims; directs the workers' compensation board to award a claimant legal fees, if it finds that an employer contested a claim without substantial evidence.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 5-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-01-08 - referred to labor [A03694 Detail]

Download: New_York-2013-A03694-Introduced.html

---

                           S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
       ________________________________________________________________________
                                         3694
                              2013-2014 Regular Sessions
                                 I N  A S S E M B L Y
                                   January 28, 2013
                                      ___________
       Introduced  by  M.  of  A. PERRY -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. GOTT-
         FRIED, HOOPER, RIVERA, ROBINSON --  read  once  and  referred  to  the
         Committee on Labor
       AN  ACT to amend the workers' compensation law, in relation to requiring
         employers or insurance carriers to present substantial  evidence  when
         contesting claims
         THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
       BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
    1    Section 1. Paragraph (c) of subdivision 2 of section 25 of  the  work-
    2  ers' compensation law, as amended by chapter 635 of the laws of 1996, is
    3  amended to read as follows:
    4    (c)  If the board shall upon a hearing determine that [objections] ANY
    5  OBJECTION to an award of compensation OR MEDICAL BENEFITS by the employ-
    6  er or insurance carrier  [were]  WAS  interposed  without  [just  cause]
    7  SUBSTANTIAL  EVIDENCE, it shall state the grounds for such determination
    8  and shall require the employer or the insurance carrier to  pay  to  the
    9  claimant,  in  addition to the amount presently due under the award, the
   10  sum of three hundred dollars AND PAY THE  REASONABLE  CLAIMS  FOR  LEGAL
   11  SERVICES  INCURRED BY A CLAIMANT AS A RESULT OF THE OBJECTIONS SO INTER-
   12  POSED.
   13    S 2. This act shall take effect immediately and shall apply  to  work-
   14  ers' compensation claims submitted on or after such date.
        EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                             [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                  LBD00124-01-3