FAILURE TO TIMELY SERVE ONE OF CLAIMANT’S EMPLOYERS WAS A VALID BASIS FOR DENIAL OF THE CLAIM.

The Third Department determined claimant’s failure to serve one of his prior employers with the application for benefits was a proper basis for denial of his claim:

Pursuant to the regulations in effect at the time of the underlying proceedings, 12 NYCRR former 300.13 (a) provided that “[a]n application to the [B]oard to review a decision of a [WCLJ] . . . shall be filed with the [B]oard within 30 days after notice of filing of the decision of the [WCLJ] together with proof of service upon all other parties in interest … . Although the Board “may in its discretion suspend or modify the application of these rules” (12 NYCRR 300.30), “the discretion to suspend its own rules does not apply to situations where a party of interest does not receive notice” … . Here, the record evidence demonstrates that claimant’s application for Board review was defective inasmuch as only one of his prior employers and the State Insurance Fund were served, notwithstanding the fact that, as claimant contends, the prior employer served its rebuttal on the parties in interest, thereby affording those parties with notice of the administrative appeal. Accordingly, the Board’s denial of claimant’s application for review was not an abuse of its discretion, and we decline to disturb that determination … . Matter of Harrell v Blue Diamond Sheet Metal, 2017 NY Slip Op 00356, 3rd Dept 1-19-17

WORKERS’ COMPENSATION LAW (FAILURE TO TIMELY SERVE ONE OF CLAIMANT’S EMPLOYERS WAS A VALID BASIS FOR DENIAL OF THE CLAIM)