By Howard Fischer | Capitol Media Services/Arizona Daily Star
A Mexican firm cannot claim the North American Free Trade Agreement excuses it from having to provide workers’ compensation coverage for its employees doing business in Arizona, the state Court of Appeals has ruled.
In a decision this week, the judges also rebuffed arguments by Porteadores del Noroeste S.A. de C.V. that Arizona’s requirements to care for injured workers were pre-empted by provisions of the U.S. Constitution giving the federal government the exclusive right to regulate foreign commerce. Appellate Judge Michael Brown, writing for the unanimous court, said he and his colleagues found no evidence that anything in federal law or regulation intended to pre-empt state worker-protection laws.
The case involves Adan Valenzuela, a Mexican citizen and resident, who was injured in a rollover accident north of Nogales and suffered numerous injuries.
If you’d like to discuss employment or health care law, contact David Weissman, dweissman@roselawgroup.com
