Workers' Compensation
Listed below is McConnaughhay, Coonrod, Pope, Weaver & Stern, P.A.'s workers' compensation case law database. The database dates back until 1971 and includes over 5500 workers' compensation court decisions.
To view the case summaries, select one of the general topics listed below.
Babin v. North Florida Shipyards
23 FLW D125
(On Motion for Clarification and Motion for
Rehearing or Certification, 23 FLW D1277 dated
May 20, 1998) Second sentence which appears in
full paragraph on page 3 of opinion amended re: "While
he was working on the highlift, Babin fell to his
death." Employee killed while working on dock area
adjacent to navigable water way. Based on evidence,
court determined that this was a workers' compensation
claim compensable under the Longshore and Harbor
Workers Act since the injury satisfied the situs and
status test for determining Longshore eligibility.
Deceased was an employee of a subcontractor and under
the Longshore and Harbor Workers Act would be
considered an employee of a contractor for exclusive
remedy purposes unless the subcontractor had coverage
for workers' compensation purposes. (33 USC Section
905(a)). In this instance, the subcontractor did have
workers' compensation coverage and therefore, the
estate could sue the contractor.
Contractor argued that claimant was a borrowed employee
of the contractor and the question is whether the
contractor could assert this position when the
contractor or subcontractor provisions of the statute
indicated that the deceased statutory employee status
of the contractor was dependent upon whether there was
a contractor/subcontractor relationship. Court
indicated that if there was a statutory
contractor/subcontractor relationship, the employee of
the subcontractor would be considered the employee of
the contractor only if the subcontractor did or did not
have workers' compensation coverage.
The "borrowed servant" test was formulated in the
opinion of Ruiz v. Shell Oil Company, 413 So. 2d 310 to
determine tort immunity in the Longshore and Harbor
Workers Act context. Nine criteria are considered and
court indicated that a majority of the factors stated
in this case weighed against a determination that the
deceased was the contractor's borrowed employee at the
time of the accident.
When an employee qualifies for and receives Longshore
and Harbor Workers Act compensation, the issue of
whether the state or federal immunity rule applies is a
question of federal law.
