Campbell v. EckmanFreeman & Assoc

In Campbell v. Eckman/Freeman & Assoc., 670 N.E.2d 925, 934 (IndCtApp 1996), an Indiana Appeals Court ruled that the injured worker and the rehabilitationist "did not have a relationship ... which would support a duty in negligence." By factoring policy considerations, the nature of the relationship, and foreseeability, the Campbell court reasoned that "no duty should be recognized" under the facts of that case. Id. at 935. Recognizing the competing policy concerns, the court wrote: "The medical rehabilitation coordinator is hired by the insurer with the goals of containing costs and returning the employee to work as expeditiously as possible, but also as safely as possible. On the other hand, the injured worker cannot be considered and treated as a party possessing equal bargaining power. The balancing of these important policy considerations is a task that should be reserved for the legislature. At the very least, companies that render rehabilitation services such as Eckman-Freeman should be required to disclose to the injured employee the limited nature of their obligations and make clear that they are employed by the insurance carrier." Id. Nonetheless, the court also stated that if the worker had been able to establish that the rehabilitation company had caused the worker additional injuries then public policy would dictate that the worker be compensated.