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The Oklahoma Supreme Court voted unanimously that a worker who had two hernias at the same time (formally called bilateral inguinal hernias) was entitled to twice the amount of workers compensation.
Under the Workers Compensation statutes, a worker who is diagnosed with a hernia on one side is entitled to temporary total disability for six weeks. However, the Supreme Court ruled that under the wording of the statute, the six weeks applies to each hernia. In order to demonstrate the hernia was a compensable injury under Workers’ Compensation, the employee had to show that:
Once the employee showed that his hernia was a compensable injury, he was entitled to receive double the compensation under the statute since his hernia was bilateral. To read the Oklahoma Supreme’s Order in its entirety, click the case below: Corbeil v. Emricks Van & Storage , 2017 OK 71 Oklahoma has several news laws that went into effect on November 1, 2018. Below is a brief synopsis of the laws:
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Being Cruel to Multiple Animals at the Same Time Can Result in Separate Charges for Each Animal11/16/2017
An Oklahoma man was charged with thirteen counts of cruelty to animals. The man argued that the maltreatment of his dogs all happened at this same time and location so it should be just one count instead of thirteen. After reviewing the case, Oklahoma’s Highest Court disagreed with the man and held that he could be charged with all thirteen counts. The Court noted that the dogs were separately chained or in separate pins. The Court then looked at the statute regarding Cruelty to Animals and determined that the intent of the statute was to protect the maltreatment of any particular animal. The man is now facing all thirteen Counts in Grant County.
For more details click the case below: State v. Gilchrist, 2017 OK CR 25 A gas station who sells alcohol to a noticeably intoxicated person may be liable for any harm the person causes to another even if they take the alcohol somewhere else to drink it. The Court also created a duty to exercise reasonable care to not sell liquor to a noticeably intoxicated person.
The opinion was issued after a man near Elk City who was intoxicated from drinking throughout an entire day stopped at a convenience store to buy more beer around 9:00 pm before heading to a party. After leaving the party around 11:00 pm, the man crashed his vehicle into a three-car vehicle killing one and injuring two others in it. After police arrived on the scene, the man was measured to have a blood alcohol content of .29g%. That is over three-and-a-half times the legal limit. The Court held that the gas station had a duty to not sell the man extra beer knowing he was already intoxicated and can be held liable for the death and injuries of the car the man crashed into if a jury finds the gas station violated its duty. For the full opinion, click the case below: Boyle v. ASAP Energy, Inc., 2017 OK 82 The Oklahoma Court of Appeals recently ruled that the right to claim a child as a dependent for tax purposes is related to an award of child support, not part of property division in a divorce. The Court cites several cases from other states as supporting the decision. The Court further stated that since the right to claim the parties’ children as dependents is modifiable, it implies such rights are akin to child support.
What does this mean for divorced parents? Anytime a modification is properly filed to change the amount of child support, it is also opening the door for a change as to which parent may claim the child or children on their taxes. To help avoid this issue, it is important to address which parent is going to be able to claim the children on their taxes and on which years they will be able to claim them. If this issue is properly addressed in the original decree, it will help avoid issues regarding taxes down the road. For the Court’s full opinion click here: Barnes v. Barnes, 2017 OK CIV APP 38 . |
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