Maine Revised Statutes Title 39-A Sec. 354 – Multiple injuries; apportionment of liability
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1. Applicability. When 2 or more occupational injuries occur, during either a single employment or successive employments, that combine to produce a single incapacitating condition and more than one insurer is responsible for that condition, liability is governed by this section.
[PL 1991, c. 885, Pt. A, §8 (NEW); PL 1991, c. 885, Pt. A, §§9-11 (AFF).]
Terms Used In Maine Revised Statutes Title 39-A Sec. 354
- Board: means the Workers' Compensation Board created by section 151 and includes a designee of the board. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 39-A Sec. 102
- Employee: includes officials of the State and officials of counties, cities, towns, water districts and all other quasi-public corporations of a similar character, every duly elected or appointed executive officer of a private corporation other than a charitable, religious, educational or other nonprofit corporation, and every person in the service of another under any contract of hire, express or implied, oral or written, except: (1) Persons engaged in maritime employment or in interstate or foreign commerce who are within the exclusive jurisdiction of admiralty law or the laws of the United States, except that this section may not be construed to exempt from the definition of "employee" a person who is employed by the State and is thereby barred by the State's sovereign immunity from bringing a claim against that person's employer under admiralty law or other laws of the United States for claims that are otherwise cognizable under this Act;(2) Firefighters, including volunteer firefighters who are active members of a volunteer fire association as defined in Title 30?A, section 3151; volunteer emergency medical services persons as defined in Title 32, section 83, subsection 12; and police officers are employees within the meaning of this Act. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 39-A Sec. 102
- employer: includes :
A. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 39-A Sec. 102- Entitlement: A Federal program or provision of law that requires payments to any person or unit of government that meets the eligibility criteria established by law. Entitlements constitute a binding obligation on the part of the Federal Government, and eligible recipients have legal recourse if the obligation is not fulfilled. Social Security and veterans' compensation and pensions are examples of entitlement programs.
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- Settlement: Parties to a lawsuit resolve their difference without having a trial. Settlements often involve the payment of compensation by one party in satisfaction of the other party's claims.
2. Liability to employee. If an employee has sustained more than one injury while employed by different employers, or if an employee has sustained more than one injury while employed by the same employer and that employer was insured by one insurer when the first injury occurred and insured by another insurer when the subsequent injury or injuries occurred, the insurer providing coverage at the time of the last injury shall initially be responsible to the employee for all benefits payable under this Act.[PL 1991, c. 885, Pt. A, §8 (NEW); PL 1991, c. 885, Pt. A, §§9-11 (AFF).]
3. Subrogation. Any insurer determined to be liable for benefits under subsection 2 must be subrogated to the employee’s rights under this Act for all benefits the insurer has paid and for which another insurer may be liable. Apportionment decisions made under this subsection may not affect an employee’s rights and benefits under this Act. There may be no reduction of an employee’s entitlement to any benefits under this Act payable by an insurer based on a prior work-related injury that was the subject of a lump sum settlement approved by the board prior to the date of the injury for which the insurer is responsible. The board has jurisdiction over proceedings to determine the apportionment of liability among responsible insurers.[PL 2009, c. 301, §1 (AMD); PL 2009, c. 301, §2 (AFF).]
4. Consolidation. The board may consolidate some or all proceedings arising out of multiple injuries.[PL 1991, c. 885, Pt. A, §8 (NEW); PL 1991, c. 885, Pt. A, §§9-11 (AFF).]
SECTION HISTORYPL 1991, c. 885, §A8 (NEW). PL 1991, c. 885, §§A9-11 (AFF). PL 1999, c. 354, §9 (AMD). PL 2009, c. 301, §1 (AMD). PL 2009, c. 301, §2 (AFF).