Have you survived the "Madness of March?" It is always such a thrill to see where a season of focused training and dedication will end up. Sometimes the outcome is spot on, and other times we are completely astonished by the performance from an unexpected under-dog. At Bailey & Wyant, PLLC our attorneys take pride in deepening their knowledge to remain experts and continue the growth of their areas of practice. And in doing so we offer dynamic representation to our clients. Please continue to read the latest news for you, and as always we thank you for your continued support.

Bailey & Wyant PLLC's equity member, Jason S. Hammond and member Daniel T. LeMasters attended the 2023 National Retail and Restaurant Defense Association annual conference in Charleston, South Carolina.

Case Law Update: Workers’ Compensation Immunity in West Virginia

The article for this month focuses on a West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals opinion that was entered on March 6, 2023. In its decision in Precision Pipeline v. Weese, the Court reversed the circuit court’s Order denying the motion to dismiss that was premised upon Workers’ Compensation immunity under West Virginia law. In the case, the plaintiff employee seriously injured his leg at work and was helped by a co-worker, the site EMT, who the plaintiff alleged was not licensed and did not offer any actual medical assistance. The plaintiff further claimed that his employer failed to summon any medical assistance at all. As a result, Plaintiff brought suit against his employer, the superintendent at the site, and the site EMT, alleging general negligence, negligent hiring, negligent retention, negligent supervision, vicarious liability, and entitlement to punitive damages.

Important to note, prior to filing suit, the plaintiff sought and received workers’ compensation benefits for his injury. The defendants asserted that because the plaintiff had received workers’ compensation benefits, the defendants were immune from suit due to West Virginia’s Workers’ Compensation immunity provided by West Virginia Code § 23-2-6. The West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals agreed. The Court noted that the language of the West Virginia Code is clear and unambiguous in that employers who have paid into the State’s workers’ compensation program and complies with all other requirements of the Act are entitled to immunity for any injury occurring to an employee and shall not be liable to respond in damages at common law or by statute. Thus, the Court held that all of the plaintiff’s claims against the employer were barred by the employer’s immunity.

However, the plaintiff in the case still argued that at least the claims against the individual employees should survive dismissal because, in plaintiff’s opinion, they were not acting in furtherance of the employer’s business and, therefore, are not immune from suit. Unfortunately for the plaintiff, the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals again agreed with the defendants. The Court found that the employee defendants were acting in furtherance of the employer’s business when they attempted to assist the plaintiff, albeit negligently. As such, the Court ruled that the defendant employees were also immune from suit. 

The employees at Bailey & Wyant PLLC, and Bailey & Slotnick PLLC continue to make strides to reducing our carbon footprint on a daily basis. We encourage everyone to take a closer look at what they are doing on a monthly, weekly or daily basis to contribute to the sustainability of our planet.

Grocery bags dissolve into potentially harmful microplastics and, in the case of ingestion or entanglement, hurt and kill animals. They’re pretty much the worst. Even though these bags are technically recyclable, you must go to a drop-off area to do that, not your curbside bin.

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