Iowa Workers' Compensation

On February 22, 2013, the Supreme Court denied further review in Merivic v. Gutierrez , No. 12-0240, a case that had earlier been heard by the Iowa Court of Appeals.   See Merivic v. Gutierrez , No. 12-0240 (Iowa App. Nov. 15, 2012).  In Merivic , the court of appeals concluded that the decision of the commissioner in Lovic v.   Construction Products, Inc.,  No. 5015390 (App. Dec. 27, 2007), was appropriate.  The  Lovic  decision had concluded that a lack of English language skills was a factor to be determined in considering the extent of industrial disability, and also concluded that the failure of a claimant to learn English was not to be considered in determining the client's motivation to work.  In Merivic , the employer had directly attacked Lovic  as being wrongly decided, and urged the court to find that Lovic  was not controlling.  The decision of the court of appeals found that the employer's position was an impermissible ...

In Carter v. Alter Trading Corp. , No. 11-1697 (Iowa App. Oct. 17, 2012), the court decided a claim dealing with equitable apportionment and penalty benefits for failure to pay benefits pending equitable apportionment.  The fighting question was whether the apportionment of death benefits among his children and wife was equitable. Claimant was a native of Honduras and had a family in Honduras at the time he died as a result of an industrial accident.  That family consisted of his oldest son, Angel, his wife Carmen, and his daughter, Lidia. Claimant came to the US to work, and provided the family with support.  Claimant had a paramour in the US, Ruth, with whom he fathered a child, Sandra.  Claimant did not live with Ruth and Sandra, but provided them with support as well. When claimant was killed, both families sought payment of death benefits.  The deputy allocated 45% of death benefits to Carmen as surviving spouse, and 22% to Angel during the period of hi...