Greetings, since the 1st DCA’s Estes decision, I am getting a lot of questions about how to handle situations involving the Statute of Limitations.
(Hope you can join us in Tampa on Friday (7/31) for our 11th annual CEU/Dinner event, we have over 200 adjusters, attorneys and vendors attending! You can RSVP to me or EG@eraclides.com, we will be covering the SOL changes)
As we discussed in a previous Tip below, it is the Employer/Carrier’s burden to prove the claimant was aware of the Statute of Limitations in order for us to utilize the defense. In the past, one of the ways we did this was to confirm the claimant received the initial packet with the Division of WC’s Informational Brochure explaining the SOL. However, even though the way the SOL is applied has changed, the Division of WC does not have any plans to update the Informational Brochure unless the Legislature amends the statute language. That does not appear to be imminent because the Estes case just applied the statutory language in a shall we say novel way to create the new framework for the SOL. So, we can no longer defend SOL claims by claiming they had knowledge due to receiving the Informational Brochure in the initial claims packet.
- In the short run, a good solution (and please do not yell at me) is for the adjuster to explain the SOL in the initial contact and document it in the adjuster notes and/or the recorded statement. If you’d like to discuss the cleanest way to explain it, given the mess, please let me know.
- I have worked with a dozen carriers or so to amend the MMI/co-pay letter to update the SOL information.
- Also, a few carriers have now reached out to find a place in the initial packet to give an update that the Informational Brochure explanation has been altered by caselaw.
Please let me know if I can help with any of the above, and always feel free to reach out regarding any SOL questions!
Join us in Orlando on 8/4/26 for a Live Surgery and CEU event at Jewett Ortho, flyer attached, come meet the doctors, watch a surgery and CEU roundtable. To register and for details: Overview ⋮ Live From The OR! ⋮ Blackthorn Events https://events.blackthorn.io/en/5e14dFD7/live-from-the-or-5a64PmJ25DZ/overview
Check out or other upcoming CEU webinars and events: https://eraclides.com/events/
Sincerely,
Morgan Indek | Managing Partner