Insurance Commissioner Comments Further on Florida Supreme Court Workers’ Comp Decision
Oct 24, 2008
The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation issued further comments today, October 24, 2008, from Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty on yesterday’s Florida Supreme Court decision regarding attorneys’ fees in workers’ compensation cases.
McCarty said:
“Florida employers have realized a tremendous savings on their workers’ compensation insurance due in no small part to the limitations on attorneys’ fees that were put in place as a result of the 2003 legislative reforms.
“Thursday’s decision by the Florida Supreme Court will have the effect of returning the law to what it was prior to the 2003 reforms and might significantly erode the savings that have been so important to Florida employers.
“The Florida Legislature will have to intervene to clarify its intent to limit attorneys’ fees in workers’ compensation cases.
“At this juncture, the workers’ compensation rating organization, the National Council on Compensation Insurance, will have to make a new filing in support of any rate impact that they believe will result from the Murray decision.”
Commissioner McCarty had stated previously that “The Office of Insurance Regulation is reviewing the Court’s decision to determine its potential impact on the workers’ compensation system as a whole and on future workers’ compensation insurance rates in Florida.”
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