The Virginia Workers’ Compensation Act (the Comp Act) was enacted in the early twentieth century in response to growing concerns over the inequities present in the common law’s attitude toward injured workers. With the advent of the industrial revolution in the nineteenth century and the economic and social benefits flowing therefrom, courts were reluctant to retard economic growth. As a result, doctrines developed that favored corporations to the detriment of their workers. The development of these new employer-friendly doctrines and the vigorous application of old ones made it difficult, if not impossible, for disabled workers to successfully sue their employers for damages resulting from workplace injuries. Often, they were left injured with no remedy.
As societal attitudes changed, state legislatures began to enact legislation to right this perceived wrong. Virginia joined this movement in 1918, enacting the original Comp Act based largely upon Indiana’s system. In an early case discussing the Comp Act, the Virginia Supreme Court offered an excellent overview of the net effect of this legislation. The court explained:
[The Comp Act] places upon industry as an expense of the business the pecuniary loss, measured by the compensation provided in the statute, attendant upon all accidents to employees within the hazards of the industry. It extends the employer’s liability to all accidental personal injuries ‘arising out of and in the course of the employment,’ the expense of which is added to the cost of production. The employer surrenders his right of defense [under the common law]. . . . The employee surrenders his right to a trial by jury and agrees to accept an arbitrary amount fixed by statute in lieu of full compensation for the injuries sustained . . . . The issue of negligence or non-negligence of the employer and the fellow servants is eliminated.
Feitig v. Chalkley, 185 Va. 96, 98, 38 S.E.2d 73, ___ (1946).
Unfortunately, in the one hundred-plus years since the Comp Act was enacted, the field of workers’ compensation law has evolved to become complex and litigious. Injured workers face the daunting task of pressing their claims for workers’ compensation benefits against powerful insurance companies and their lawyers. Fortunately, The Law Office of Craig A. Brown, PLLC is there to help injured workers level the playing field.