What Is the New Mexico Workers’ Compensation Act?

Prior to accepting responsibilities as a judge, Shanon Riley built an accomplished career as an attorney through positions with law firms and government entities across New Mexico. Drawing on this experience, Shanon Riley now serves in her capacity as workers’ compensation judge with the New Mexico Workers’ Compensation Administration.

New Mexico enacted its first workers’ compensation regulation in 1927, less than two decades after it became a state. This original law prevented employees injured on the job from suing those who had purchased insurance while also ensuring that workers who had been injured had access to medical care and compensation. Since its first iteration, the New Mexico Workers’ Compensation Act has undergone several revisions to ensure that it meets the needs of all parties.

Today, employers with at least three workers must purchase workers’ compensation insurance to protect employees in cases of illness or injury. This coverage is mandatory for all employers but a few, including those who employ farm workers, real estate salespeople, and domestic servants.

As of 2016, the act also provides a number of benefits to employees who incur injuries while working on the job. For instance, these individuals will receive medical coverage for any physician visits or therapy sessions they must attend to help overcome their injuries. Those who do not work for extended periods of time due to injury may receive temporary, permanent partial, or permanent total disability compensation to make up for lost wages.

The Workers' Compensation Administration’s Ombudsman Program

With a BA in criminal justice from the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque and a juris doctor from the university’s School of Law, Judge Shanon Riley has been providing legal services in New Mexico since she graduated in 2001. In 2011, Judge Shanon Riley took on her current position with the Workers’ Compensation Administration of New Mexico.

The Workers’ Compensation Administration offers a program whereby workers or employers facing a workplace injury case can call an ombudsman to help them with it before or instead of hiring a lawyer.

Ombudsmen are available to offer information and explain a party’s rights while staying neutral to either side of a given case. Often, ombudsmen can act as mediators to help resolve an issue of communication between two parties. Any call to ombudsmen is totally confidential, however, and they will never contact the other party without permission.

Workers’ compensation lawyers work to argue a case in a client’s favor and do their best to achieve a favorable outcome. It’s best to get a lawyer for a more complex case, while ombudsmen are ideal to help when the problem is simple and easy to resolve. An ombudsman’s services are free and available to anyone who does not have a lawyer. The WCA ombudsman program is reachable at the helpline, 1-866-WORKOMP.

Ruling Expands New Mexico Workers’ Compensation Rights

A legal professional presiding over cases in the New Mexico Workers’ Compensation Administration, Judge Shanon Riley decides cases involving workers’ compensation claims. Before becoming a judge, Shanon Riley served the public as senior trial attorney with the New Mexico First Judicial District Attorney’s Office.

In June 2016, the New Mexico Supreme Court decided a case with major consequences for the state’s employers and employees. The court’s decision strikes down a portion of state law that omits workers on farms and ranches from the New Mexico workers’ compensation system. In essence, those workers, numbering in the tens of thousands, can now secure financial assistance from their employers in the event they hurt themselves on the job.

The judges voted in favor of the decision by a four-to-one majority, with the lone dissenting voice arguing that to overturn the law was to infringe on legislative authority. The decision agrees with that of a lower court.

In addition to the workers’ compensation ruling, the New Mexico Supreme Court ruled on the state’s Assisted Suicide Act. The unanimous decision upholds the act as constitutional.

Bernalillo County District Attorney's Office Helps Crime Victims

 

Judge Shanon Riley presides over court proceedings, establishes rules and procedures in the courtroom, and mediates between litigants in her appointment as a judge for the New Mexico Workers’ Compensation Administration. An experienced public servant, Judge Shanon Riley began her law career as an associate trial attorney in Albuquerque, New Mexico, at the Bernalillo County District Attorney's Office.

Many of the legal issues handled by Bernalillo County District Attorney's Office involve victimization crimes. To address the unique needs of the victims of violent crimes, the district attorney’s office launched the Victim Impact program, which provides information, support, and assistance to victims and their families.

Professional advocates within the Victim Impact program help victims navigate the criminal justice system. Advocates plan and assist with client safety, provide referrals to legal and medical help, and direct clients toward financial assistance and counseling services. Additionally, advocates orient the victim with the legal process, explaining court proceedings, assisting with paperwork and legal documentation, and keeping victims abreast of developments in their case.

Programs of the National Judicial College

An experienced trial attorney and general counsel, Judge Shanon Riley currently oversees workers’ compensation cases in Albuquerque, New Mexico. As part of her commitment to a range of legal issues, Judge Shanon Riley has also completed several continuing education courses, including one through the National Judicial College (NJC) on conducting fair administrative law hearings.

The first judicial education institution open to judges throughout the United States and around the world, the National Judicial College was established in 1963. Over the course of its history, the college has grown to encompass more than 100 courses offered at both an online portal and various physical locations in dozens of states, all of which are designed with the mission of justice, innovation, and education in mind. The NJC’s educational offerings include the following:

-Certificate program. With six different specialty areas, ranging from administrative law adjudication skills to tribal justice skills, the NJC’s certificate program allows participants to focus their education on a single area. As complements to an existing degree, the certificates demonstrate to the profession at large that a judge is dedicated to a particular aspect of law.

-Degree programs. The NJC, the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges, and the University of Nevada, Reno, have formed a collaborative to offer master’s and doctor of philosophy degrees in judicial studies. Primarily taught off campus, the master’s degree program can take up to six years with flexible options for the courses taught at any one of the three partner institutions.

-Justice management program. This master’s degree program is also a joint offering of the NJC, the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges, and the University of Nevada, Reno. Also supported by five legal associations, the justice management degree program was created to establish a solid academic foundation for people in the legal field.