Occupational claims properly dismissed due to failure to establish that disability was due in a material degree to conditions at work that were characteristic of or peculiar to employment.

The judge of compensation dismissed with prejudice the petitioner’s claims against the three defendant employers, finding that the petitioner failed to meet “her burden of establishing that her disability was due in a material degree to conditions at work that were characteristic of, or peculiar to her occupation.” In affirming this dismissal, the Appellate Division relied on an analysis of N.J.S.A. 34:15-31(a), finding that the petitioner failed to meet her burden of establishing causation in this matter. The judge of compensation characterized the attempts of the petitioner’s expert to relate the petitioner’s disability to her work activity with the respondents as being problematic. Rather, the judge found the defendants’ expert to be significantly more credible and compelling on the issue.

^{Case Law Alerts, 1st Quarter, January 2017. Case Law Alerts is prepared by Marshall Dennehey Warner Coleman & Goggin to provide information on recent developments of interest to our readers. This publication is not intended to provide legal advice for a specific situation or to create an attorney-client relationship. Copyright © 2017 Marshall Dennehey Warner Coleman & Goggin, all rights reserved. This article may not be reprinted without the express written permission of our firm.}