Presented by The National Association of Workers’ Compensation
Judiciary, Inc. (NAWCJ)

Separate registration required.

Registration Is Required To Attend The National Workers’ Compensation Judiciary College. See www.nawcj.org.
You Must Be An Adjudicator or Regulator To Attend.

Monday, August 20, 2018

8:00 – 6:00 pm
Grand Ballrooms 4 – 6
Convention Level

(Day 2 of this program is on Tuesday, August 21, 2018 beginning at 8:45 am in Grand Ballrooms 4 – 6. Day 3 of this program is on Wednesday, August 22, 2018 beginning at 8:50 am in Hall of Cities – New York & New Orleans.)

8:00 – 8:30 am
Registration and Information

8:30 – 9:00 am
Welcome

Honorable Jennifer Hopens, NAWCJ President
Texas Department of Insurance, Division of Workers’ Compensation
Austin, TX

9:00 – 10:50 am
Evidence for Adjudicators

Introduction of Panel:
Honorable Jennifer Hopens, NAWCJ President
Texas Department of Insurance, Division of Workers’ Compensation
Austin, TX

Panel:
Professor Charles W. Ehrhardt
Florida State University School of Law
Tallahassee, FL

Honorable Michael Alvey
Kentucky Workers’ Compensation Board
Owensboro, KY

Honorable Wesley Marshall
Virginia Workers’ Compensation Commission
Richmond, VA

Honorable Neal Pitts
Florida Office of Judges of Compensation Claims
Orlando, FL

This distinguished panel will bring perspectives from academia, trial and appellate experts. The discussions will include: the role of workers’ compensation adjudicators in weighing evidence, distinctions between competent and substantial evidence versus clear and convincing evidence, the concept of “presumption” standards in first responder injuries, and the admissibility of social media evidence. Professor Ehrhardt will also address perceptions of differences between legal causation and medical causation, between medical probability or possibility, and between medical certainty, and the evidentiary gaps between standards like “more probable than not,” “clear and convincing,” and “major contributing cause.”

10:50 – 11:00 am
Break

11:00 – 11:50 am
Turning the Churn: A Vision for Workers’ Recovery

Introduction of Panel:
Honorable Sheral Kellar
Louisiana Workforce Commission
Baton Rouge, LA

Panel:
Mark Pew
Senior Vice President, Product Development & Marketing
Preferred Medical
Louisville, KY

Robert Wilson
WorkersCompensation.com
Sarasota, FL

Words matter and people’s perceptions shape their opinions and affect outcomes. How does the language we use affect the recovery for those we serve within the workers’ compensation system? How does a lexicon impact attitudes and actions that influence priorities and motivations? How is the industry perceived by those outside it, and do those perceptions create financial and human cost? How can we improve workers’ compensation with just the words we use? This session will discuss how a change in our industry nomenclature can dramatically affect the direction of a recovering worker’s future. Presenters will offer alternative concepts for the future of our industry, where function and recovery are emphasized in a system that communicates clearly with those it serves, and where impairment does not have to become disability.

12:00 – 12:30 pm
Lunch (provided)
Grand Ballrooms 1 & 2
Convention Level

12:30 – 1:50 pm
Comparative Workers’ Compensation Law Panel

Introduction of Moderator and Panel:
Honorable Karl Aumann
Maryland Workers’ Compensation Commission
Baltimore, MD

Moderator:
Honorable Shannon Bruno Bishop
Louisiana Workforce Commission
New Orleans, LA

Panel:
Honorable Deborah Blevins
Virginia Workers’ Compensation Commission
Richmond, VA

Honorable Melody James
South Carolina Workers’ Compensation Commission
Columbia, SC

Honorable Ralph Humphries
Florida Office of Judges of Compensation Claims
Jacksonville, FL

This panel discussion will bring perspective on how our statutes are different, and how they are similar. Dealing with statutory interpretation is part of our daily routine. Despite the diversity of our particular statutes, we share a multitude of concordant issues and challenges, which this program illuminates. Each year brings different states to the panel, and therefore differing viewpoints to the conversation. This program is consistently among the highest rated of the judiciary college.

1:50 – 2:00 pm
Break

2:00 – 5:00 pm
The Afternoon is divided into two Tracks, one for the newer adjudicator and one for the more seasoned adjudicator

 

Track One –
The NAWCJ New Judge Program

2:00 – 5:00 pm
Grand Ballrooms 4 – 6
Convention Level

Back by popular demand, the NAWCJ presents education specifically for the new adjudicator. Transitioning to the bench from private practice can involve various challenges. Much of the three-hour program Monday afternoon is intended to foster frank discussions in small groups. This series of discussions is focused on those who have been on the bench for two years or less, but all adjudicators are encouraged to attend.

2:00 – 2:10 pm
Announcements and Business

Honorable Jennifer Hopens
NAWCJ President
Texas Department of Insurance, Division of Workers’ Compensation
Austin, TX

2:10 – 3:00 pm
Writing the Order for Appellate Scrutiny

Introduction of Moderator and Panel:
Honorable Kenneth Switzer
Tennessee Court of Compensation Claims
Nashville, TN

Moderator:
Honorable Benjamin Vinson
Georgia State Board of Workers’ Compensation
Atlanta, GA

Panel:
Kimberly A. Hill, Attorney
Kimberly A. Hill, PL
Fort Lauderdale, FL

William H. Rogner, Attorney
Hurley, Rogner, Miller, Cox & Waranch, PA
Orlando, FL

You’ve just completed (endured?) a lengthy contested hearing. You are ready to write your decision. The way in which you craft your order may well impact appellate review. Our learned panel will offer insights and suggestions to help you draft more effective orders that have a better chance of surviving appellate scrutiny.

3:00 – 3:10 pm
Break

3:10 – 4:00 pm
Dealing with Difficult Litigants

Introduction of Moderator and Panel:
Honorable Robert Cohen
Florida Division of Administrative Hearings
Tallahassee, FL

Moderator:
Honorable Wilbur Anderson
Florida Office of Judges of Compensation Claims
Daytona Beach, FL

Panel:
Honorable Suzette Carlisle
State of Missouri, Office of Administration
St. Louis, MO

Yuannie Arroyo Casillas
Adjudicator
State Insurance Fund Corporation of the Government of Puerto Rico
Guaynabo, PR

Honorable Susan Caravaggio
Central District Judge Manager
Workers’ Compensation Office of Adjudication
Williamsport, PA

Managing a courtroom and docket are difficult enough without having to deal with obstreperous and obnoxious lawyers and parties. Our panel will share tips and insights in how to manage your courtroom and maintain decorum in the face of difficult litigants.

4:00 – 4:10 pm
Break

4:10 – 5:00 pm
Judicial Ethics Conundrums and Humdrums

Moderator:
Honorable Jane Rice Williams
Kentucky Department of Workers’ Claims
London, KY

Panel:
Honorable Shannon Bruno Bishop
Louisiana Workforce Commission
New Orleans, LA

Honorable Delia Turano Schadt
Maryland Workers’ Compensation Commission
Baltimore, MD

Honorable David Torrey
Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry
Pittsburgh, PA

The new judge takes the bench with a volume of experience and knowledge. As good as that foundation may be, there are new rules and processes that must now be mastered. The Code of Judicial Conduct, state policies, and executive orders confront the new workers’ compensation adjudicator. Moderator Jane Williams and a panel of seasoned judges and commissioners will guide a discussion of some of the common ethical concerns of new judges. Attendees will gain knowledge and confidence in the interpretation of judicial ethical requirements.

 

Track Two –
SAWCA Regulator Roundtable

2:00 – 5:00 pm
Crystal Ballroom G1
Convention Level

For the more seasoned adjudicators, Monday afternoon offers the opportunity for a doctorate-level exposure to comparative law in workers’ compensation. The Southern Association of Workers’ Compensation Administrators (SAWCA) will present its 8th Annual Regulator Roundtable. Regulators and Administrators from across the country will discuss hot topics challenging workers’ compensation systems. Attendees will hear perspectives, initiatives, problems and solutions.

Welcome:
Gary Davis
Executive Director
SAWCA
Lexington, KY

Moderator:
Honorable Melodie L. Belcher
SAWCA Past President
Administrative Law Judge
Georgia State Board of Workers’ Compensation
Columbus, GA

Panel Participants:
Steve Garrett
Alabama Department of Labor
Workers’ Compensation Division
Montgomery, AL

Honorable Gaetano Testini
Administrative Law Judge
Industrial Commission of Arizona
Phoenix, AZ

Paul Tauriello
Director
Colorado Division of Workers’ Compensation
Denver, CO

Tanner Holloman
Director
Florida Division of Workers’ Compensation
Tallahassee, FL

Andrew Sabolic
Deputy Director
Florida Division of Workers’ Compensation
Tallahassee, FL

Honorable David Langham
Deputy Chief Judge
Florida Office of the Judges of Compensation Claims
Pensacola, FL

Honorable Frank R. McKay
Chair
Georgia State Board of Workers’ Compensation
Atlanta, GA

Honorable Robert Switzer
Commissioner
Department of Workers’ Claims
Frankfort, KY

Honorable Bruce Moore
Administrative Law Judge
Kansas Department of Labor
Division of Workers’ Compensation
Salina, KS

Honorable Sheral Kellar
Director
Louisiana Office of Workers’ Compensation
Baton Rouge, LA

Honorable Shannon Bruno Bishop
Judge
Louisiana Workforce Commission
Harahan, LA

Paul H. Sighinolfi
Executive Director / Chair
Maine Workers’ Compensation Board
Augusta, ME

Honorable R. Karl Aumann
Chair
Maryland Workers’ Compensation Commission
Baltimore, MD

Scott Curtis
Assistant Attorney General
Maryland Workers’ Compensation Commission
Baltimore, MD

Honorable Deneise Turner Lott
Sr. Administrative Law Judge
Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission
Jackson, MS

Mark S. Formby
Chair
Mississippi Workers’ Compensation Commission
Jackson, MS

Honorable Thomas Stine
Judge
Nebraska Workers’ Compensation Court
Lincoln, NE

Honorable Rachel Bayless
Judge
New Mexico Workers’ Compensation Administration
Albuquerque, NM

Gary M. Cannon
Executive Director
South Carolina Workers’ Compensation Commission
Columbia, SC

Honorable T. Scott Beck
Chair
South Carolina Workers’ Compensation Commission
Columbia, SC

Honorable Kenneth M. Switzer
Chief Judge
Tennessee Bureau of Workers’ Compensation
Court of Workers’ Compensation Claims
Nashville, TN

Honorable Marshall Davidson
Presiding Judge
Tennessee Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board
Nashville, TN

Honorable Jennifer Hopens
Director of Appeals Panel
Texas Department of Insurance, Division of Workers’ Compensation
Austin, TX

Dan Paschal
Deputy Commissioner
Texas Department of Insurance, Division of Workers’ Compensation
Austin, TX

Honorable Wesley Marshall
Chair
Virginia Workers’ Compensation Commission
Richmond, VA

Frank Lasee
Division Administrator
Wisconsin Division of Workers’ Compensation
Madison, WI

Joe Moreth
Director, Bureau of Insurance Programs
Wisconsin Workers’ Compensation Division
Madison, WI

5:00 – 6:00 pm 

NAWCJ and SAWCA Reception
Grand Ballrooms 1 & 2
Convention Level

The perfect closure for the first day of our NAWCJ program is the official welcoming reception for adjudicator attendees, regulators and associate members. Following a full day of edification and instruction, this is the chance to mingle and unwind with old friends and new acquaintances.