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Article Archives By Practice
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Workers' Compensation Articles Archive
Decision in Simms Calls Virginia "Horseplay Doctrine" Into Question
(September, 2009) By Kathryn Lea Harman, Associate.
On July 28, 2009, the Virginia office of Semmes won an
appellate decision in Simms v. Ruby Tuesday, Inc., that could spell the end of
the "horseplay doctrine" in Virginia Workers' Compensation cases. Prior to
Simms, the question in claims brought by employees injured by other employees
was whether the injured employee was a participant in or an innocent victim of
horseplay. A claimant able to prove that he was not a participant thereby
established that his injury "arose out of" his employment, and that he was
entitled to compensation.
The Virginia Court of Appeals agreed with Semmes' argument
that the Virginia Supreme Court's decisions in Hilton v. Martin and preceding
cases mandates that in employee assault cases, the focus must instead be on
whether the injured employee was subjected to harmful contact because of his or
her employment, and whether the conditions of employment required the behavior
leading to the injury. The Court of Appeals held that the claimant's injury,
which resulted from co-workers throwing ice at him, did not arise out of his
employment. While not overturning the "horseplay doctrine" cases, the Court of
Appeals stated that the doctrine had been called into "serious question".
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