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Hubbard v. Hills Materials

$5.0 million award for employer stonewalling of Worker's Comp claims!.
Hubbard v. Hills Materials - Ron Hubbard, a construction laborer, needed $5,998 in medical treatment for carpal tunnel injuries brought on by his work as a construction laborer for Hills Materials in South Dakota. His supervisors were given bonuses for denying and defeating such claims in a company wide program to reduce worker's compensation claims. One supervisor had even picked up an employee from the hospital on the day of a surgery to make them sit in the office for the rest of the day to avoid a lost day from work. In a move likely to slow down the industry wide practice of underreporting of injuries and wrongfully disputing worker's compensation claims, a South Dakota court recently awarded $65,000 in compensatory damages and $ 5,000,000 in punative damages against the employer involved in such conduct. Even though the insurer, Liberty Mutual, had already settled out of court for its wrongful conduct, the court found the employer liable for "aiding and abetting the commission of a tort for its role in convincing the insurer to wrongfully deny the claim. For more information visit the news section of this or a related website.