Alabama Workers' Comp Blawg

  • 22
  • Oct
  • 2023

Alabama Supreme Court Says Removing Lid to Unclog Machine Constitutes a Repair Instead of Safety Device Removal

On December 2, 2022, the Alabama Supreme Court release its opinion in Ex parte Varoff wherein it granted the employer’s petition for writ of mandamus. The trial judge had previously denied summary judgment in this safety guard removal case where the evidence revealed that a lid was removed from the subject machine just prior to the employee injuring his arm. The Alabama Supreme Court determined that it was necessary to remove the lid to unclog the machine. Since unclogging the machine enabled the machine to work properly it constituted a repair thus disqualifying it as a safety guard removal.




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