The Pennsylvania Tort Claims Act provides immunity to certain classes of entities. Certain entities have historically been deemed to be within the class entitled to the immunity afforded by the Act. For example, volunteer fire departments have been entitled to immunity so long as they meet a two-part test established by the Pennsylvania Supreme...
Insights and analysis from our attorneys
C&W Journal
March 01, 2012
Defense Win! Appellate Division Holds That Expert Opinion of...
Davis v. Barkaszi, 2012 N.J. Super. LEXIS 15 (App.Div. Feb. 9, 2012), defendant bar appealed an unfavorable jury verdict claiming that, inter alia, the trial judge excluded important evidence...
March 01, 2012
Pennsylvania Amends Oil & Gas Act Creating a More Favorable...
On February 8, 2012, House Bill 1950 was passed by the Pennsylvania General Assembly, and six days later on Tuesday February 14, 2012, the bill was signed into law by Governor Corbett. This bill...
March 01, 2012
Cipriani & Werner Obtains Dismissal of Personal Injury Claim...
Attorney Adam L. Seiferth, for Cipriani & Werner, PC, successfully defended a convenience mart against a claim that plaintiff was injured due to defective exterior steps. Plaintiff parked her...
January 05, 2012
Cipriani & Werner Wins Appeal Before the Commonwealth Court...
Cipriani & Werner recently represented Allegis Group in Allegis Group v. WCAB (Coughenaur) , Pa. Commw. No. 977 C.D. 2010, filed October 20, 2010, in which the Commonwealth Court outlined the...
January 05, 2012
Jury Confirms No Negligence For C&W Client
On December 13, 2011, following a two day jury trial in York County, Pennsylvania, Adam L. Seiferth of Cipriani & Werner, P.C. obtained a defense verdict for the client. The plaintiff, who was...
January 05, 2012
Medical Provider Applications In New Jersey WC
The New Jersey Workers’ Compensation Court recently issued an opinion in the matter of Burn Surgeons of St. Barnabas v. Shop Rite concerning the payment of medical treatment in the context of a...
January 05, 2012
Positively Bullish on Positive Work Order Defense
While we typically think of workers’ compensation as an arena where the fault of the injured worker plays no part, Section 301(a), 77 P.S.§431, of the Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Act (Act)...
January 05, 2012
Switch and Re-Switch: Superior Court Changes Mind Twice and Extends...
On November 23, 2011, an en banc panel of the Pennsylvania Superior Court in Barrick v. Holy Spirit Hosp. of the Sisters of Christian Charity, 2011 PA Super 251 (Pa. Super. Ct. 2011), overturned a...
January 05, 2012
Traffic Violation Alone Insufficient to Maintain Punitive Damage...
In Jacoby v. Sims, 101 Luz. Reg Reports 46 (Van Jura, J. ,2011), defendant filed Preliminary Objections to strike any and all claims of recklessness and/or punitive damages from the plaintiff’s...
January 05, 2012
Escape From Philadelphia County: Part II
Proper venue is determined by the Pennsylvania Rules of Civil Procedure. For corporations, the rules dictate that litigation can only be commenced in the county where the cause of action arose;...
January 05, 2012
Escape From Philadelphia County: Part I
Litigating in the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is seen by defendants as a risky proposition, especially for personal injury claims. The venue is known for having the most...
January 05, 2012
House Bill 1976 Legislature Weighs In On Venue Debate
The Pennsylvania Legislature is currently considering House Bill 1976 (“HB 1976”) which will significantly limit the list of counties where a plaintiff may bring a personal injury action—although...
January 05, 2012
Governor Signs Legislation Banning Text Messaging While Driving in PA
On November 9, 2011, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett signed Senate Bill 314 into law, which will ban text messaging while driving. The new law goes into effect in March 2012. The ban is subject...
July 15, 2011
"Fair Share Act" Signed into Law
As anticipated in our previous C&W Journal (when a new bill had only just been placed on the Pennsylvania House agenda), the “Fair Share Act” is now law in Pennsylvania, having been signed by...
May 21, 2011
Indemnification Agreement Interpretation In New Jersey
On March 15, 2011, the New Jersey Supreme Court decided the case of Tina Kieffer v. Best Buy, 203 N.J. 93 (2011), which will impact parties who enter into indemnification agreements with vendors...
January 26, 2011
New Bill To Be Introduced To State House As "Fair Share Act"
I. Present Responsibility of Defendants Under current Pennsylvania law, if you are a defendant in a lawsuit with at least one other defendant and are joint tortfeasors*, you may be responsible for...
December 03, 2010
High Court Adopts New Statute of Limitations Test for Title VII Claims
Title VII of the Civil Rights of 1964 prohibits an employer from engaging in discriminatory employment practices on the bases of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. The United States...
December 03, 2010
Pre-Trial Negotiations May Be Considered In Awarding Attorney'...
Under 42 U.S.C.§ 1988, a prevailing party in a civil rights lawsuit brought pursuant to 42 U.S.C.§ 1983 may seek a reasonable amount of attorney’s fees, as well as costs of litigation. The Supreme...
December 03, 2010
Employer's Role in Settling Claims
The Employer’s Role in Settling Claims In 1996, the Pennsylvania Legislature passed Act 57. The legislation has had a dramatic effect on how workers’ compensation cases are handled. One of the...
July 04, 2010
RELEASE ME! Cipriani and Lenzi Success in Top Court’s Reinstatement...
C&W is pleased to report a major success in its appeal to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court on behalf of its resort client in a personal injury action brought by a skier who fell while boarding a...