In Miles vs. City of Edgewater Police, 1D15-0165 the First District Court of Appeal declared Florida Statutes 440.105(3)(c) and 440.34 unconstitutional because they infringe on the Claimant’s right to contract to pay attorney’s fees from their own funds for litigating a workers compensation claim. Any contract for fees for representing…
Are ex parte communications between a nurse case manager and a physician permissible? The answer to this question truly depends on whether the nurse case manager is a qualified rehabilitative provider performing a reemployment assessment or if the nurse case manager is solely retained to perform medical care coordination services. If…
On 4-28-16, the Florida Supreme Court in the case of Castellanos v Next Door Company SC 13-2082 declared Florida Statute 440.34 unconstitutional because it violated the Constitutional due process right to the courts for the injured workers. The constitutional violation was based on the failure of that statute to allow claimants’ attorneys…
An important decision regarding a business’ duty to prevent over serving has been released by the 4th District Court of Appeal in the case of Stephanie De La Torre, Humberto Miranda and Carla Gallardo, Appellants, vs. Flanigan’s Enterprises, Inc d/b/a Flanigan’s Bar and Grill. In this decision, the Plaintiffs, Stephanie…
As we know, the law requires that a medical benefit which includes, but is not limited to, the treatment, a device or an aid be medically necessary. In order to award that benefit, the test is whether it is medically necessary. A Judge of Compensation Claims may award only those medical benefits that are…
In yesterday’s blog we referenced Attorney Hoffman’s early experience in successfully picking stocks in which to invest. An IBD Special Report from June 29, 2001 explaining her methodology. Jo Ann Hoffman’s expertise in business has been said to help her obtain the best possible settlements for her clients. Her team work…
If you review the graph at the bottom of this article you will see that as the price of oil goes so goes your investments. My solution is to stabilize the stock market and global economies by having the U.S. set the price of oil at $45 per barrel. At the current price of…
This discussion will center on Federal Liens which you need to be aware of and handle with common sense. So put the Federal lienholder on notice of a third party claim and settlement as you can pay them back a portion of money they paid for the related medical treatment…
What happens in your Longshore or Defense Base Act (DBA) claim if you re-injure yourself working for a different employer after your initial accident? The answer, like many legal questions, is “it depends.” If a Claimant’s disability results from the natural progression of a prior injury and would have occurred…
The answer to this question is – NO. The 1st District Court of Appeals recently addressed this question and issued an opinion which can be found in Boley Centers, Inc./Comp Options v. William Vines, Case No. 1D14-5869 (November 16, 2015). Specifically, the 1st DCA held that the JCC erred when he…