Dependency at Time of Injury, not Resulting Death, Determines Right to Survivor’s Benefits in Maine

Dependency at Time of Injury, not Resulting Death, Determines Right to Survivor’s Benefits in Maine

Case File The Supreme Judicial Court of Maine held that eligibility for workers' compensation death benefits hinges on dependency at the time of the injury, not at the time of death. Because the statute does not require ongoing dependency or marital status up to the date of death, the spouse’s subsequent divorce and remarriage did not extinguish her entitlement to benefits linked to the employee’s (her ex-husband’s) 1985 injury.  Case/ /Brewster…