Brunson-Malone v. United States
- Lewis Kaplan
- 1:21-cv-09665
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
In Brunson-Malone v. United States, Judge Wang granted a 30-day stay while the Labor Department reviewed Brunson-Malone’s federal injury claim.
The stay affects Tanisha Brunson-Malone and the United States in the pending Federal Tort Claims Act action while the Department of Labor considers Brunson-Malone’s federal employee-injury claim.
What happened
Brunson-Malone v. United States concerns Tanisha Brunson-Malone’s Federal Tort Claims Act lawsuit over an alleged slip and fall at a Department of Veterans Affairs hospital. The parties asked to pause the case while the Department of Labor considered whether she was covered by a federal employee-injury program.
The Department of Labor had not yet decided Brunson-Malone’s claim and had given her until April 9, 2024, to provide requested information and medical documentation. The parties therefore requested an additional 30-day pause, until May 16, 2024.
Judge Ona T. Wang granted the application and ordered the additional stay. The order did not decide whether Brunson-Malone was covered by the federal employee-injury program or whether her lawsuit could proceed.
The detailed version
- Brunson-Malone v. United States · No. 1:21-cv-09665
- Lewis Kaplan
- Apr. 16, 2024
Background
Tanisha Brunson-Malone brought this action against the United States under the Federal Tort Claims Act, alleging that she slipped and fell at the James J. Peters VA Hospital in the Bronx. The United States said that, when the incident occurred, Brunson-Malone was a Department of Veterans Affairs “Without Compensation” appointee working on a VA-supervised medical research project at the hospital.
The Department of Labor’s Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs made a preliminary determination that Brunson-Malone might be covered under Section 8101(1)(B) of the Federal Employees’ Compensation Act. The Government stated that, if she was covered, federal law would prevent her from bringing a Federal Tort Claims Act action for the injury. The parties had previously obtained multiple stays so Brunson-Malone could file a federal employee-injury claim and the Department of Labor could decide whether the program covered her.
Department of Labor proceedings
Brunson-Malone notified the court on December 15, 2023, that she had filed a claim with the Department of Labor based on an injury she said occurred while leaving a bathroom at the VA hospital on March 18, 2021. In January 2024, the Department of Labor requested additional information, including a questionnaire about her relationship with the VA and a report from her treating physician. After Brunson-Malone reported that she had not received one of the letters, the Department resent it on February 9, 2024, and kept the claim open for 60 days after that date. The parties reported that the Department had not yet issued a decision.
Ruling
The court granted the parties’ application for an additional 30-day stay, through May 16, 2024, to give the Department of Labor time to adjudicate Brunson-Malone’s claim. Judge Ona T. Wang’s order did not resolve the Federal Tort Claims Act lawsuit, determine FECA coverage, or decide whether the alleged injury occurred as claimed.
Disposition
Application granted. The action was stayed for an additional 30 days, until May 16, 2024.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.