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Section 251 Determination of the Board of Directors: Portions of Assessment Manual Policy Items AP1-37-1 and AP1-37-3 Unlawful – In WCAT-2011-02362 the WCAT chair determined that portions of policy items AP1-37-1 (The Classification System) and AP1-37-3 (Classification – Changes) of the Assessment Manual were so patently unreasonable that they could not be supported by the Workers Compensation Act (Act). As required by section 251 of the Act, the WCAT chair forwarded this determination to the board of directors of the Workers’ Compensation Board, for them to review the policies and decide whether WCAT may refuse to apply them.

On November 18, 2011 the board of directors issued their determination under section 251(6) of the Act. They concluded that WCAT may refuse to apply the portions of these policies which provided for an annual classification cycle whereby each employer was assigned a classification unit for assessment purposes on an annual basis.

The board of directors’ resolution 2011/11/08-01 (Re: Section 251 Referral – Annual Classification Cycle) amended the affected portions of Assessment Manual policy items AP1-37-1, AP1-37-3, and AP1-96-1. The amended policies apply to all decisions, including WCAT decisions, made on or after November 8, 2011.

You can read the board of directors’ determination here and resolution with Assessment Manual revisions here.

WCAT has now reactivated the appeals that were suspended pending the board of directors’ determination on this section 251 referral. Parties to those appeals can expect to receive a letter shortly from WCAT advising them of the reactivation and the further processing of their appeal.

(Posted 2011/11/22)

Appeal Expenses: Noteworthy Decision WCAT-2011-01673A – provides guidance regarding the reimbursement of medical legal opinions. In particular, parties should have reference to the WCAT Manual of Rules of Practice and Procedure and the WCAT website, which contains information regarding reimbursement of appeal expenses, the Workers’ Compensation Board’s fee schedules, and factors which may be considered in determining whether to order reimbursement for such appeal expenses beyond the fee schedule. You can view the Noteworthy Decision WCAT-2011-01673A here (Posted 2011/11/14)

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