PAYLESS OIL COMPANY AND CIGNA, APPELLANTS,
v.
HARRY R. REYNOLDS, APPELLEE
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The court held that a workers' compensation carrier's lien on third-party settlement proceeds applies to both past and future benefits, capped by the net tort recovery amount, and the carrier is not entitled to receive the entire lien amount immediately.
[1] A workers' compensation carrier is entitled to a lien on third-party settlement proceeds for both past and future benefits paid, with the net tort recovery amount serving…
[2] A workers' compensation carrier's recovery from a third-party settlement must be distributed, with a portion allocated immediately and the remainder applied to reduce fut…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceA workers' compensation insurer (Payless) had a lien on settlement proceeds recovered by an injured employee (Reynolds) from a third-party tortfeasor.…
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PARKER, Judge.
Payless Oil Company and Cigna, its workers’ compensation insurer, appeal a trial court order of equitable distribution of the settlement proceeds that Harry R. Reynolds recovered in a negligence action against a third-party tortfeasor for injuries Reynolds suffered in an automobile accident while employed by Payless. We reverse the order as to the amount of money immediately recoverable by the insurer from the settlement proceeds and in regards to the total amount that the insurer will be permitted to recover. Under section 440.39(3)(a), Florida Statutes (1983),1 a workers’ compensation carrier is entitled to a lien on third-party settlement proceeds for both past workers’ compensation benefits paid and those to be paid in the future. Pursuant to this statute, Payless filed a notice of payment of compensation and medical benefits in the action that Reynolds filed against the third-party tortfeasor. When Reynolds settled the negligence action but could not reach an agreement with Payless as to the amount of money needed to settle Payless’s lien, Reynolds moved the court to determine the amount of the workers’ compensation lien.
The trial court made the following findings which are relevant to this appeal:
1. The total value of Reynolds' claim was $1,000,000;
2. The carrier had paid $135,280.44 in indemnity and medical benefits;
3. The total amount of the workers' compensation lien was $101,460.33;2
4. The gross settlement of the third-party action was $447,000;
5. The total amount of attorney’s fees and costs incurred in recovering the settlement was $217,114.44.
The trial court ordered Reynolds to pay the carrier $30,000, the amount previously placed in an interest bearing account, plus accrued interest and then for the carrier to retain 30.5% of future indemnity benefits until the carrier recovered a total of $101,-460.33, the amount of the lien.
Preliminarily we note that the trial court’s calculation of the equitable distribution rate, which it determined to be 30.5%, appears to be in error;3 however, Reynolds did not cross-appeal that issue. We, therefore, shall not disturb that finding by the trial court. The trial court did err in other aspects of the order in areas which have been preserved for our review.
The trial court mistakenly limited the carrier’s total recovery to $101,460.33, which only accounts for past benefits paid. The carrier’s lien, however, applies to both past and future benefits with the net tort recovery amount as a cap. See Aetna Ins. Co. v. Norman, 468 So. 2d 226, 228 (Fla.1985). Thus, the carrier may recover a total of $229,885.56,4 the amount of the net settlement in Reynolds’ action against the third party.
The carrier is not entitled to receive that amount of money all at once. The carrier should receive $41,260.53 immediately. We arrived at that figure by taking 30.5% of the total workers’ compensation benefits already paid. Then the carrier may reduce future indemnity benefits5 by 30.5% until the carrier has recovered a total of $229,885.56. The carrier must recommence payment of full benefits once it has recouped an amount equal to Reynolds’ net tort recovery. See Norman, 468 So. 2d at 228. We find no merit in the other contentions raised by Payless and Cigna.
Reversed and remanded for correction of the order consistent with this opinion.
FRANK, A.C.J., and HALL, J., concur. . Specifically, this section, in effect at the time the claimant sustained his accident on April 27, 1984, provides in part:
Upon suit being filed, the employer or the insurance carrier, as the case may be, may file in the suit a notice of payment of compensation and medical benefits to the employee or his dependents, which notice shall constitute a lien upon any judgment or settlement recovered to the extent that the court may determine to be their pro rata share for compensation and medical benefits paid or to be paid under the provisions of this law, less their pro rata share of all court costs expended by the plaintiff in the prosecution of the suit including reasonable attorney’s fees for the plaintiff’s attorney. In determining the employer’s or carrier’s pro rata share of those costs and attorney’s fees, the employer or carrier shall have deducted from its recovery a percentage amount equal to the percentage of the judgment which is for costs and attorney’s fees. Subject to this deduction, the employer or carrier shall recover from the judgment, after costs and attorney’s fees incurred by employee or dependent in that suit have been deducted, 100 percent of what it has paid and future benefits to be paid, unless the employee or dependent can demonstrate to the court that he did not recover the full value of damages sustained because of comparative negligence or because of limits of insurance coverage and collectibility. The burden of proof will be upon the employee.
§ 440.39(3), Fla.Stat. (1983).
. The trial judge arrived at this figure by reducing the benefits paid ($135,280.44) by 25%, the percentage of comparative negligence that the court attributed to Reynolds.
. A review of Manfredo v. Employer’s Casualty Insurance Company, Workers’ Compensation Lienholder, 560 So. 2d 1162, (Fla.1990) clearly establishes that the percentage is determined by the following formula:
net settlement = equitable distribution total value of the claim, rate
Applying that formula to this case the result would be
$ 229,885.56 = 22.98% $1,000,000.00
. This figure is obtained by subtracting the amount of attorney's fees and costs incurred in recovering the settlement ($217,114.44) from the gross settlement amount ($400,000).
. We have limited the source of recovery to be from future indemnity benefits because that was the trial judge’s ruling, and we find no abuse of discretion on that matter.
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Lemuel B. Magsipoc v. Larsen, 639 So. 2d 1038 (Fla. 5th DCA 1994)…Ltd. v. Board of Trustees of Internal Imp. Trust Fund of State of Florida, 458 So. 2d 369 (Fla. 2d DCA 1984), approved, 512 So. 2d 934 (Fla.1987); Capps v. Klebs, 178 Ind.App. 293, 382 N.E. 2d 947 (3d Dist.1978). . See Payless Oil Co. v. Reynolds, 565 So. 2d 737 (Fla. 2d DCA 1990); Underwood v. Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services, 551 So. 2d 522 (Fla. 2d DCA 1989), rev. denied, 562 So. 2d 345 (Fla.1990); American Mutual Insurance Co. v. Decker, 518 So. 2d 315 (Fla. 2d DCA 1987); Reyes v. Banks,…
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Volk v. Gallopo, 585 So. 2d 1163 (Fla. 4th DCA 1991)…Florida Statutes (1987). Under the statute, “a workers’ compensation carrier is entitled to a lien on third-party settlement proceeds for both past workers’ compensation benefits paid and those to be paid in the future.” Payless Oil Co. v. Reynolds, 565 So. 2d 737, 737 (Fla. 2nd DCA 1990). The language of section 440.39(3)(a) creates an equitable distribution formula to be applied when an employee has not received the full value of his damages because of comparative negli [*1165] gence or the limits of insura…1 / 2
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Tarmac of Florida/Liberty Mut. Ins. Co. v. Gwaltney, 604 So. 2d 907 (Fla. 5th DCA 1992)…the future.” In limiting Liberty Mutual’s recovery of future benefits to a reduction of its indemnity payments, and disallowing any reduction of future health care payments, the trial court cited as authority the case of Payless Oil Co. v. Reynolds, 565 So. 2d 737 (Fla. 2d DCA 1990). The issue before us, quite simply, is whether the trial court has the discretion, under section 440.39(3)(a), to limit a carrier’s lien on future benefits to indemnity (compensation) benefits to the exclusion of medical benefits…
Previewing 3 of 5 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- AETNA Ins. Co. v. Norman, 468 So. 2d 226 (Fla. 1985)
- Manfredo v. Emp'r's Cas. Ins. Co., 560 So. 2d 1162 (Fla. 1990)