A Capehart Scatchard Blog

John H. Geaney

John H. Geaney, Esq. is a Shareholder and Co-Chair of Capehart Scatchard's Workers' Compensation Group. Mr. Geaney began an email newsletter entitled “Currents in Workers’ Compensation, ADA and FMLA” in 2001 in order to keep clients and readers informed on leading developments in these three areas of law. Since that time he has written over 500 newsletter updates.

Mr. Geaney is the author of Geaney’s New Jersey Workers’ Compensation Manual for Practitioners, Adjusters & Employers. The Manual is distributed by the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education (NJICLE). He also authored an ADA and FMLA Manual also distributed by NJICLE. If you are interested in purchasing “Geaney’s New Jersey Workers’ Compensation Manual for Practitioners, Adjusters & Employers,” please contact NJICLE at 732-214-8500 or visit their website at www.njicle.com.

Mr. Geaney represents employers in the defense of workers’ compensation, ADA and FMLA matters. He is a Fellow of the College of Workers’ Compensation Lawyers of the American Bar Association. He is one of two firm representatives to the National Workers’ Compensation Defense Network.

A graduate of Holy Cross College summa cum laude, Mr. Geaney obtained his law degree from Boston College Law School.

Mr. Geaney was selected to the “New Jersey Super Lawyer” list (2005-2017, 2021 in the area of Workers’ Compensation). Only 5% of attorneys are selected to “Super Lawyers” through a peer nominated process based on independent research and peer evaluation. The Super Lawyers list is issued by Thomson Reuters. For a description of the “Super Lawyers” selection methodology, please visit https://www.superlawyers.com/about/selection_process.html

For the years 2022-2024 Mr. Geaney was selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America® list in the practice area of Workers’ Compensation Law - Employers. The attorneys on this list are selected based upon the consensus opinion of leading lawyers about the professional abilities of their colleagues within the same geographical area and legal practice area. A complete description of The Best Lawyers in America® methodology can be viewed via their website at https://www.bestlawyers.com/methodology.

*No aspect of this advertisement has been submitted to or approved by the Supreme Court of New Jersey.

Capehart Scatchard is a full service law firm with offices in Mt. Laurel and Hamilton, New Jersey. The firm represents employers and businesses in a wide variety of areas, including workers’ compensation, civil litigation, labor, environmental, business, estates and governmental affairs.

Employer Improperly Failed to Allow Employee to Cure Defect in FMLA Medical Certification before Terminating Employee for Excessive Absenteeism

By on October 2, 2015 in FMLA, NJ Workers' Comp with 0 Comments

Cases in the Third Circuit Court of Appeals have great importance for New Jersey employers in connection with the FMLA.  The case of Hansler v. Lehigh Valley Hosp. Network, 790 F.3d 499 (2015 U. S. App. LEXIS 10444) (3d Cir. June 22, 2015) is worthy of study.  It involved a technical partner who was hired […]

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Appellate Court Refines Rules on Workers’ Compensation Lien Rights

By on September 23, 2015 in Key Defenses, NJ Workers' Comp with 0 Comments

The case of Jose Moreira v. Carlos Peixoto, et. al., A-5741-12T1 (App. Div. September 10, 2015) presents a complex tale of insurance fraud that ends with an important clarification about the lien rights of an employer and the potential challenges to lien calculations by employees. Jose Moreira was injured working privately on a house owned […]

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Court Holds that Need for Knee Treatment Is Not Related to Prior Work-Related Meniscal Repair but to Preexisting Arthritis

By on September 18, 2015 in Key Defenses, NJ Workers' Comp with 1 Comment

Employers always struggle with this dilemma:  if a claimant receives an award for knee surgery related to a repair of a torn meniscus, does that mean that future knee treatment for arthritis in the knee must be the responsibility of the employer? This issue arises often when the subject at issue is a possible total […]

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Accelerating Permanency Payments Where There Is a Large Third Party Award

By on September 11, 2015 in NJ Workers' Comp, Uncategorized with 3 Comments

In the past month three clients have asked what they should do when there is a third party award larger than the comp award and the adjuster needs to pay a permanency award.  For example:  the claimant recovers $750,000 in a third party law suit.  The total medical and temporary disability benefits are $150,000, and […]

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Petitioner’s Claim Was Not Time Barred Because He Did Not Know the Precise Nature of His Medical Condition

By on September 2, 2015 in NJ Workers' Comp, Uncategorized with 1 Comment

New Jersey has a statute of limitations for occupational disease claims.  In Rajpaul v. McDonald’s Corporation, A-4681-13T4 (App. Div. August 28, 2015), the proper application of the statute became the issue on appeal. In this case, the petitioner worked as a maintenance person from August 1995 until November 2005 at McDonald’s.  He began to have […]

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Law Firm Properly Terminated Support Services Assistant with Permanent Lifting Restrictions of No More than 20 Pounds

By on August 24, 2015 in FMLA, NJ Workers' Comp with 0 Comments

Charlesetta Jennings worked as a Support Services Assistant (SSA) at Womble Carlyle, a 500 lawyer firm based in North Carolina. Her job required performing a wide variety of tasks, including managing supplies, delivering or picking up packages, copying and scanning documents, setting up conference rooms, filing for receptionists, operating copy and scanning machines, and binding […]

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Limousine Driver in Business not Unlike Uber Found to Be Independent Contractor

By on August 13, 2015 in NJ Workers' Comp, Uncategorized with 1 Comment

In a surprising decision that is particularly topical with various states facing similar issues with the popular company UBER, the Appellate Division held in Babekr v. XYZ Two Way Radio, A-3036-13T3 (App. Div. August 6, 2015) that a limo driver was not an employee when his vehicle was involved in a crash during the course […]

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New Jersey School Board Did Not Violate FMLA When It Terminated Custodian Who Exhausted FMLA Time

By on August 6, 2015 in FMLA, NJ Workers' Comp with 0 Comments

Colleen Pizzo worked as a custodian for the Lindenwold Board of Education in Camden County, New Jersey.  She went out of work beginning June 19, 2012 for depression.  She filed the formal FMLA request on June 26, 2012.  The Board approved the leave beginning June 19, 2012.  While she was out, Pizzo requested an extension […]

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Federal Court Rejects ADA Suit by Security Officer but Allows Workers’ Comp Retaliation Claim to Go to Trial

By on July 27, 2015 in ADA, NJ Workers' Comp with 0 Comments

Patrick Vasnaik worked for Providence Health & Services – Oregon as a security officer from 2006 to 2012.  His performance evaluations over the years fluctuated between requiring improvement to exceeding expectations.  However, he required several coachings over the years for not arriving on time to work.  In May 2010 he received a “documented coaching” after […]

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Appellate Court Explains How an Employer Can Protect Its Lien Rights by Filing Suit in the Name of the Injured Worker

Employers are aware that if the claimant has not pursued his or her third party civil action within a year of the injury, the employer can provide a 10-day notice and then sue in the name of the injured worker.  But what happens if the injured worker will not cooperate with the law suit?  Can […]

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Door Remains Closed to Suits by Employees Against Employers for Intentional Harm

In New Jersey it remains extremely difficult to bring an intentional harm claim against one’s employer.  Mere knowledge and appreciation of a risk is not intent.  That was the holding in Keller v. Township of Berkeley, A-5767-12T3 (June 22, 2015). Mr. Keller worked as a laborer for the Township sanitation department and suffered serious injuries […]

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UPS Did Not Violate FMLA in Firing Employee Who Was on Intermittent FMLA Leave

By on June 29, 2015 in FMLA, NJ Workers' Comp with 0 Comments

Intermittent leave can be extremely difficult for employers.  One important point for employers to realize is that an employee on intermittent leave who comes to work in between flare-ups may be held to all customary performance standards.  The case of Parks v. UPS Supply Chain Solutions, Inc. 2014 U.S. DIST LEXIS 13538 (E.D. Kentucky 2014) […]

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New Jersey Supreme Court Reverses Key Ruling by Appellate Court that Vested Original Jurisdiction on Employee Status With the Division of Workers’ Compensation

In 2014 an important appellate court decision was decided on whether all cases involving the interpretation of employee status must be referred to the Division of Workers’ Compensation.  On June 11, 2015, the New Jersey Supreme Court reversed the Appellate Division in Estate of Myroslava Kotsovska v. Saul Liebman (A-89-13) (073861). The facts were tragic.  […]

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Section 20 Settlement Versus Order Approving Settlement

Every New Jersey workers’ compensation practitioner must evaluate the benefits of a Section 20, (which is a lump sum full and final payment), versus an order approving settlement, (which involves an award of a percentage of disability under Section 22).  About twice as many cases settle under orders approving settlement in New Jersey than under […]

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Appellate Court Affirms Some Sanctions Against Employer and Reverses Other Sanctions

Sanctions against an employer in workers’ compensation are rather rare, and the case of Pschunder-Haaf v. Synergy Home Care of South Jersey, A-3138-13T3, (App. Div. May 12, 2015) provides some guidance on conduct that may lead to such sanctions. The petitioner, Pschunder-Haaf, a home health aide, injured her low back when a patient fell on […]

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