My question is when you settle a work comp case here in Florida and sign all pertinent documents how long does opposing counsel have to review and submit the settlement documents to the judges office... A week? A month? A year? What is reasonable. Certainly there must be some rule of law on this. Unfortunately I asked a less direct question previously and although I received several good response's I didn't think the question through and was well aware that opposing counsel are the ones that need to submit the settlement documents to the judges office. I have been in contact with my attorneys office numerous times but only receive vague responses at best.
Good Morning. Your question seeks to know the time period a defense counsel has in submitting documents for signature to the judge. I am not sure based on your question if in fact you have yet signed the settlement documents with your attorney, as that would need to take place prior to the submission of the same to the judge. Naturally, there are many reasons a settlement can be upheld that are reasonable and legally justified. I would strongly urge you obtain a definitive response from your attorney as to why the documents are not yet in the hands of the judge of compensation, assuming they have not been submitted to the judge as of yet. Once the judge approves the motion filed, the carrier has 14 days to provide the lump-sum payment. It has been my experience that most defense counsel do not send documents to the judge until they have the Employer/Carrier check in hand so to make sure to not violate the 14 days rule. I hope this helped and again would recommend a call to your counsel and perhaps a discussion about whether the settlement is in your best interest considering the delay; such a chat might put some urgency to the resolution of your case. Catherine
There is no time limit.There are not as many rules as you would think on things like this because you have no right to settlement and settlements are purely negotiable. Also, there is no requirement that the attorney for the employer/carrier submit the attorney fee/child support motion to the judge of compensation claims. Some of us who represent injured workers do it ourselves.
When you settle a case, you can at that time try to work out the timing for the submission of settlement papers to the judge. If that is not done, then there is no set time, just what a "reasonable" time would be. That includes variables as to the type of settlement you enter into, whether there are other agreements beyond the workers' compensation settlement being resolved at the same time, and more importantly whether the language of some of the terms of the settlement are agreed to by everyone. In your case, I would ask your attorney what specifically is holding up the papers. Also, unless agreed otherwise, some of the papers can be submitted to the judge by your own attorney too. Also, if the papers are not timely submitted to the judge, your attorney can ask the judge to enforce the settlement, which is another option - depending on the situation. Ultimately, it is a fact specific question - which is why your attorney is the one you need to ask about your particular situation.
