Boxer & Gerson Partner Bert Arnold’s involvement with the California Applicants’ Attorneys Association (CAAA) spans many roles, from serving as past president of the statewide organization to his current role as CAAA’s legislative chair, to his frequent appearances as a panelist and lecturer at educational events for attorneys, physicians, and qualified medical examiners (QMEs). It was in this latter role that he appeared in April and will again in June at CAAA-sponsored events.
Bert Arnold
Arnold was one of two panelists in CAAA’s “ExamWorks” seminar for QMEs on April 29 in Sacramento. He presented the workers’ side of the medical evaluation process while the defense side was discussed by Richard Montarbo, a Red Bluff-based attorney with whom Arnold frequently appears in collegial educational settings and also as opposing counsel in workers’ compensation hearings. The two discussed “cumulative traumas,” a key factor in many workers’ compensation cases.
In certain cases, the defense may challenge a proposed financial award to an injured worker based on the assertion that previous injuries to the same body part or system are responsible for some percentage of the current injury. Determining the extent, if any, of a previous injury’s impact on a worker’s current condition is a difficult task, and it can be a key factor in arriving at a workers’ compensation award. The more knowledge and experience QMEs obtain on the matter, the more likely they are to determine an award that will be considered just by all parties.
At CAAA’s upcoming summer convention at the San Francisco Hyatt from June 22-25, Arnold will serve as a panelist on the subject of “Settlement Addendums,” which occur when employers wish to add certain language to case settlements after the state has generated the forms that settle a case. Settlement Addendums usually involve fine points and particulars that were not specifically included in the original settlement, but which remain to be elaborated and negotiated if necessary as the parties proceed to enact the practical aspects of the agreement.
Arnold is a certified workers’ compensation specialist who makes regular appearances on the “Bay Area Super Lawyers” lists. Now in his 31st year as a practicing attorney, he joined Boxer & Gerson in 1999 and became a partner with the firm in 2005.
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