GQ Corner

Q. I have an injured worker whose job requires him to work on/around docks. He recently slipped and twisted his ankle in the course and scope of his employment. Is this a Longshoreman claim, or just a regular Texas workers’ compensation claim?

A. This is a clarification of the previously published answer: You do not say if the worker was potentially subject only to Texas workers’ compensation, or potentially another state…a common scenario where many of these workers live in, are recruited from, and work in different states. 

Texas is an “exclusive” state, as the injured workers’ remedy is exclusively under an applicable federal workers’ compensation law. Even if the worker has a Texas connection, the Division of Workers’ Compensation and Texas courts have no jurisdiction over the claim. Even if Texas workers’ compensation might be in play on the facts, this is (if it qualifies) exclusively a Longshore claim. 

But, if another state’s workers’ compensation laws might be in play, you must determine if that state is an “exclusive” state, or a “concurrent” [“dual”] jurisdiction state.  If the latter, the injured worker may be able to tap both state and federal benefits.  

Q. When are death benefits stopped for a widow who remarries?

A. She would be entitled to payment through the date of marriage, and then a lump sum payment for 104 weeks starting on the day after the marriage date.