On Oct. 9, 2008, senior French lecturer Joanna Luks was struck by a rubber plate that rolled across West Avenue as the wrestling team performed its exercise regimen on Libe Slope. Although Cornell has agreed to pay Luks workers’ compensation, her attorney said that the amount is “grossly inadequate” and is negotiating with the University for a larger sum that would cover all damages.

The Sun reported on Oct. 22, 2008 that Luks sustained a fractured skull, broken ribs, pierced lungs, pneumothorax and a broken jaw, and was airlifted to Arnott Ogden Medical Center in Elmira for surgery.

“[Luks] is going to be left with significant permanent damages and so the claim would be for all her damages — missed work, her past medical expenses, her future medical expenses, the permanent disability and other damages that are allowed under the law,” said Luks’ attorney Patrick Regan.

New York State workers’ compensation provides two-thirds of the average weekly wage in the state multiplied by the percentage of disability, according to the New York State Workers’ Compensation Board website. Workers’ compensation is usually provided for an injury that occurred in the course of work. According to Regan, Cornell wants to pay Luks’ workers’ compensation for the incident because she was on University property at the time, walking home from work.

Regan also said that “With any type of an injury, especially a serious head injury here where there are cognitive deficits or something like that, workers’ comp[ensation] is grossly inadequate. It just happened that she was technically on her employers’ premises because she was technically at work.”

“If they refuse to resolve the claim, they are forcing her in effect to bring a claim against the students,” Regan said.

Although Luks suffered from severe injuries, she is making progress in her recovery.

“It’s a long road but she’s working very hard and she’s made a remarkable recovery from where she started,” Regan said. “She’s definitely going to have some lingering impact.”

Luks has not returned to work at Cornell since the incident. “The department is currently working with her to develop a schedule for her to return in the Spring, beyond that I can’t go into any detail. We look forward to having her back, trying to work something out that’s suitable for her based on what her doctor has to say,” said Colette Walls, administrative manager for the Department of Romance Studies.

Luks had originally hoped to return this semester, according to Regan, who added that she now plans to start on a reduced schedule in the spring.

“She’s going to return in her same capacity as she was before but just on a reduced schedule, not doing it on a full time basis to see how things go. I think it will take a semester or two to see how she’s doing,” Regan said.

In regards to the possible lawsuit, Regan said, “We’re in discussions with the University and so it’s very difficult to predict what’s going to happen. We’re in discussions with the representatives of the general counsel’s office.”

Luks and her attorney are discussing a resolution to her claim. Regan said that the University has been “receptive to our argument” and that “We anticipate that sometime in January or February we’ll sit down with the appropriate representatives in the general counsel’s office to see if we can reach a resolution.”

Simeon Moss, deputy University spokesperson, did not have any comment on the incident but stated in an e-mail that “the training exercise on Libe Slope has been removed from the team’s training regimen.” He noted that this did not constitute a change in University policy.

“The University takes the safety of individuals on campus very seriously,” Moss stated in the e-mail.

“As the University’s response to litigation depends of the particular facts of each case, I am not able to answer hypothetical questions about litigation. And with respect to questions about a particular matter, it is our practice not to discuss such matters in the press,” Deputy University Counsel Nelson Roth stated in an e-mail.