2nd Disability Claims Management

Reducing the soaring costs of disability claims through effective management
Date: September 18 & 19, 2014
Location: Toronto
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Highlights

Learn the latest trends in investigating, treating and litigating physical non-visible conditions claims.

Uncover best practices for managing claims of employee mental and psychological disabilities

Explore the nature, diagnosis and treatments of various invisible disabilities

Get details on effective return to work programs and how to successfully deal with accommodation issues

Explore best practices for a legally compliant and effective investigation

Examine the human rights issues arising out of disability claims in the workplace and how to avoid discrimination when dealing with these cases

See how to go about choosing experts to help support your claim

Learn how to effectively audit your current practices and develop programs that specifically target your employee needs

Faculty

FACULTY
COURSE LEADERS
Debra A. Wight, Town of Richmond Hill
Debra Wight is the Manager of Employee Health, Safety and Benefits at the Town of Richmond Hill. She has more than 20 years of experience in the field of occupational health and safety. She is responsible for overseeing the Town’s occupational safety, benefits and award winning wellness program.
Barry A. Kuretzky, Kuretzky Vassos Henderson LLP
Barry A. Kuretzky is a Senior Partner with Kuretzky Vassos Henderson LLP. His area of practice encompasses all aspects of employment and labour law. He acts for employees as well as for many of Canada’s largest companies, representing them at the Labour Board, arbitrations, union negotiations, ADRs and at all court levels
CO-LECTURERS
Deborah C. Anschell, ADR Chambers
Deborah C. Anschell is a mediator and arbitrator with ADR Chambers. Her experience includes disability insurance.
Rishi Bandhu, Bandhu Law Professional Corporation
Rishi Bandhu is a Partner with Bandhu Law Professional Corporation.
Heather Crisp, City of Toronto
Heather Crisp is a Solicitor at the City of Toronto. She has been a practicing labour and employment lawyer for over 30 years.
Keith Elliott, Reed Research
Keith Elliott is Vice-President, Operations and Business Development with Reed Research Limited. Keith has been a Licensed Private Investigator in varying capacities for over 22 years. He has extensive experience with; Property-Casualty, Criminal, Life, Health and Disability insurance investigations across Canada and Internationally. He has presented evidence and testified in precedent setting cases at the Supreme Court of Ontario and FSCO.
David Lackman, Gluckstein Personal Injury Lawyers PC
David Lackman is a Partner at Gluckstein Personal Injury Lawyers. His litigation practice includes complex personal injury and disability claims.
Allan Smofsky, Smofsky Strategic Planning (SSP)
Allan Smofsky is the Managing Director of Smofsky Strategic Planning (SSP), a strategic planning consultancy dedicated to measurably improving workplace health, engagement and performance
Deborah Taylor-Suttie, Sun Life Financial
Deborah Taylor-Suttie is an Organizational Health Consultant at Sun Life Financial. She works with plan sponsors across Canada to optimize their health, attendance, and disability management strategies.
Victor Trotman, University Health Network
Victor Trotman is Senior Director, Labour Relations at the University Health Network.
Phil Wolfenden, Shields O'Donnell MacKillop LLP
Philip Wolfenden is a Partner at Shields O'Donnell MacKillop LLP. He is a recognized expert and leader in the field of progressive employee relations.
Ulpia Stephens, Desjardins Financial Security
Ulpia Stephens is a Disability Case Management Specialist at Desjardins Financial Security.
Jane E. Sleeth, Optimal Performance Consultants
Jane E. Sleeth is a Disability Consultant and Managing Director at Optimal Performance Consultants.

Program

COURSE PROGRAM
Diagnosing, Assessing & Treating Invisible Disabilities & Injuries
Dealing with claimants suffering from invisible disabilities and injuries is becoming a challenge that is both time consuming and difficult to prove or disprove. This session will explore the nature, diagnosis and treatments of various invisible disabilities in order to provide a better understanding of these conditions.

Assessing the extent of invisible disabilities

Treatment and accommodation of these disabilities

Types of assessments to evaluate invisible injuries

Ensuring accuracy in diagnosis: choosing appropriate experts

Disability evaluation and impairment assessments

Managing Claims of Employee Mental and Psychological Disabilities
Mental health issues, while having the ability to totally undermine workplace performance, are often a non-evident and episodic disability. This along with its sensitive nature make addressing these claims challenging. This session will look at managing claims of employee mental disabilities.

Defining disability and impairment in the context of mental illness

Proactive tools for addressing mental health issues claims

Potential difficulties in obtaining information

Effectively investigating a mental disability claim

Accommodation and return to work for mental disabilities

Workplace Accommodations
Organizations need clearly defined processes for accommodating disabled employees, particularly in light of the expanding scope of accommodation obligations. This session details how to successfully deal with accommodation issues, with a special focus on mental health and other invisible disabilities.

Developing policies and procedures to meet accommodation obligations

Legislative developments impacting the duty to accommodate

Recent case law implications

Assessing whether an accommodation would cause undue hardship

Return to Work Coordination
A return to work process helps ease the reintroduction of employees who have been away after a disability related leave. However, this process should be flexible so it can be tailored to suit the specific needs of individual employees. This session will walk you through the elements of an effective return to work program.

Key components of "stay at work" and "return-to-work" programs

Coordinating efforts with various health professionals

Ensuring managers & supervisors support the return-to-work program

Strategies to minimize the recurrence of disability following a return to work

Social Media Surveillance
The use of social media has exploded over the last few years, to where it has become infectious in our daily activities. Social media sites, such as Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest represent approximately 1/5 of all Internet traffic. Keith Elliott (VP Operations) of Reed Research Investigations, as they review and explore the current trends and how they support physical surveillance with these sources. This seasoned investigator will show you how to:

Effectively utilize on-line resources

Conduct virtual / digital surveillance

Access OSINT (Open Source Intelligence)

Preserving digital mediums legally

Practice “Safe Search”

While providing some interesting insight and a few tips, tricks and tools you can utilize along the way, when exploring the veracity of your claims

Disability Claim Litigation Limitation Periods
Each province has general statutes of limitations and many provincial and federal statutes contain limitation periods applicable to a variety of causes of actions. The subject of when time begins to run has received greater attention from our courts. This session will look at disability claim litigation limitation periods.

Federal and provincial law regarding limitation periods and late notice

Effect of delays in communicating or litigating with a disability insurer

Effect of delays in providing appropriate information

Registrar's orders/dismissal for delay

ADR for Disability Claim Disputes
While alternative dispute resolution approaches and mediations may sometimes be effective in settling disability claims, they come with their own list of complexities. This session will explore the factors to consider in devising successful resolution strategies.

Best practices for the ADR process

The roles of the various participants in a mediation

Avoiding Discrimination and Human Rights Violations When Managing Disability Claims
The often subjective nature of disability claims can lead to accusations of discrimination and human rights violations if not handled properly. This session will examine the human rights issues arising out of disability claims in the workplace and how to avoid discrimination when dealing with these cases.

Understanding how allegations of discrimination may arise

How to respond to discrimination claims

Managing disability claims without infringing on employees' rights

Recent Court Decisions: Punitive Damages
In March 2013, two court decisions Branco v. American Home Assurance Co. and Fernandes v. Penncorp Life Insurance ordered significant punitive damage awards against LTD insurers for their handling of claims. Though the awards will likely be appealed they still could have significant implications moving forward. This session will look at the impact of these cases.

Overview of the two cases: key issues

Potential implications going forward

Fallout for insurers

Accommodating Employees at the University Health Network
Beyond it being a legal requirement, there are obvious direct and indirect benefits to providing accommodation to employees within the overall disability claims management process. This case study session details the very real benefits of the accommodation process.

· Business case for accommodations

· Optimizing employee & business performance: enhancing company image and employee morale

· Real case examples, myths and realities: what job accommodations involve and how they are implemented at UHN

Multimedia Presentations

MULTIMEDIA PRESENTATION
How to work and communicate effectively with experts
William Simpson
Lerners LLP
Conducting discoveries
Brad Pleavin
Share Lawyers
Common errors to look out for
David Morin
Will Davidson LLP
Developing a "robust” disability claims management process at the County of Simcoe
Karen J. Upshaw
The Corporation of the County of Simcoe
Treating absenteeism in the unionized environment
Erica Fuhr
Jazz Aviation LP
Health & wellness programs to combat absenteeism at Stantec
Douglas Kube
Stantec Inc.
Absenteeism & the duty to accommodate: Making the law an ally
Tamara Johnson
McMaster University
Leveraging occupational medicine in disability cases
Michael Schweigert
The Occubus Project
Complex terminations: Disability & absenteeism
Francis Hartman
my HR coach
Disability management – How one organization broke down barriers
Sandra Levy
CNIB
Inclusion of employees with disabilities
Michelle Edwards, CHRP, CCP
Loblaw Companies Ltd.
Disability and absenteeism management in the current legal context
Barbara G. Humphrey
Barbara G. Humphrey Professional Corporation
Managing disability-related absenteeism
Karen M. Clark
Rouge Valley Health System and Lakeridge Health Corporation
Tracking and monitoring absenteeism
Suzanne Diefenbaker
Nolitours and Transat Holidays
Developing an effective return-to-work process
Karen Drysdale-Chung
Organizational Solutions Inc.
Access to medical information during the return to work process
Blair W. McCreadie
Fraser Milner Casgrain LLP
Accommodation & attendance management
Julie McAlpine Jeffries
University of Toronto
Identifying & managing addiction in the workplace
Sarah Crossley
Norton Rose Canada LLP.
Duty to accommodate in a unionized environment
Abdul-Basit Khan
Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP
Accommodation and undue hardship
Soma Ray-Ellis
Himelfarb Proszanski LLP
Latest legal developments impacting the duty to accommodate
Karen R. Bock
Davis LLP
Designing & implementing accommodation policies & procedures
Ryan D. Campbell
Gowlings Lafleur Henderson LLP
Developing a strategy for accommodation
Jessica Gobran
North York General Hospital
Dealing with mental health accommodation in a unionized environment
Chris McNelly
Travel Alberta
Creating accommodation strategies for employees with mental illness
Pat Ferris
Janus Associates

Participants

ADR Chambers

Bandhu Law Professional Corporation

City of Toronto

Desjardins Financial Security

Gluckstein Personal Injury Lawyers PC

Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP

Kuretzky Vassos Henderson LLP

Optimal Performance Consultants

Reed Research

SSP Smofsky Strategic Planning

Sun Life Financial

Town of Richmond Hill

University Health Network

Who should attend

Plantiff and Defence Counsel; Insurer & Employer In-House Counsel; VPs, Directors, & Managers of Disability Claims & HR; claims examiners; medical, disability and rehab specialists; IMEs; consultants

Price

Price list:-
  • Course: $1975
  • Webcast only : $1575
  • Webcast and Proceedings : $1874
  • Course and Proceedings : $2274
  • Proceedings Only: $799
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Additional Information

REGISTRATION:
To reserve your place, call Federated Press toll-free at 1-800-363-0722. In Toronto, call (416) 665-6868 or fax to (416) 665-7733. Then mail your payment along with the registration form. Places are limited. Your reservation will be confirmed before the event.
LOCATION:
Courtyard by Marriott Downtown Toronto, 475 Yonge Street, Toronto, ON, M4Y 1X7, (800) 847-5075
CONDITIONS:
Registration covers attendance for one person, the supplementary course material as described in this document, lunch, morning coffee and refreshments during breaks are provided for registered duration. The proceedings of the event will be captured on audio or video. Multimedia proceedings with all slides and handouts can be purchased separately on a CD-ROM which will also include the event material.
TIME:
Registration begins at 8:00 a.m. The morning sessions start promptly at 9:00.
CANCELLATION:
Please note that non-attendance at the event does not entitle the registrant to a refund. In the event that a registrant becomes unable to attend following the deadline for cancellation, a substitute attendee may be delegated. Please notify Federated Press of any changes as soon as possible. Federated Press assumes no liability for changes in program content or speakers. A full refund of the attendance fee will be provided upon cancellation in writing received 13 days prior to event date. No refunds will be issued after this date. Please note that a 15% service charge will be held in case of a cancellation.
DISCOUNT:
Federated Press has special team discounts. Groups of 3 or more from the same organization receive 15%. For larger groups please call Sandra Frattolillo at 1-800-363-0722, ext. 223 to get more information.
PAYMENT:
Payment must be received seven days prior to the event date.