Delaware: For Non-Sponsored Recreational Events, Compensability Substantial Direct Benefit to Employer

Reiterating that to determine whether a company-sponsored recreational event occurs within the course and scope of one’s employment, Delaware has adopted the four-factor standard set forth in Larson’s Workers’ Compensation Law [§ 22.04], but that for recreational activity not sponsored by the employer, the state utilizes the standard set forth in State v. Dalton, 2005 Del. Super. LEXIS 15, aff’d, 878 A.2d 451 (Del. 2005), which requires that the employer derive “substantial direct benefit” from the activity, a Delaware appellate court found that the state’s Industrial Accident Board utilized the incorrect standard in considering the injured worker’s claim. Reversing the Board’s decision, the court remanded for additional findings.

Thomas A. Robinson, J.D., the Feature National Columnist for the LexisNexis Workers’ Compensation eNewsletter, is the co-author of Larson’s Workers’ Compensation Law (LexisNexis).

LexisNexis Online Subscribers: Citations below link to Lexis Advance.

See Morris James LLP v. Weller, 2017 Del. Super. LEXIS 122 (Mar. 16, 2017)

See generally Larson’s Workers’ Compensation Law, § 22.04.

Source: Larson’s Workers’ Compensation Law, the nation’s leading authority on workers’ compensation law