O’Connor v. Consulate Health Care / Gallagher Bassett
JCC Weiss (Fort Myers)(Paul Terlizzese)(5-18-21) – Awarded E/C taxable costs. The claimant did not dispute the E/C was the prevailing party from the June 2020 final hearing. At the final hearing, the claimant sought continued authorization of medical treatment. The E/C argued that the statute of limitations had run on the claim, which the JCC agreed with. The E/C sought $1,362.45. The JCC rejected the claimant’s argument that the adjuster’s affidavit was deficient in that she signed it electronically. The JCC found that the affidavit indicated that the adjuster personally appeared before a notary. The JCC also rejected the claimant counsel’s argument that Mr. Terlizzese, attorney for the E/C, did not personally confer prior to the filing of the verified motion. The JCC accepted the testimony of Mr. Terlizzese that a draft of the verified motion was emailed to the claimant’s counsel 12 days before it was filed on the OJCC docket. The E/C also argued that they were not only the prevailing party to the 12/30/19 PFB, but also were the prevailing party on several other PFB’s. However, the JCC agreed with the claimant and found that the E/C’s affidavit only claimed entitlement to costs as the prevailing party on the 12/30/19 PFB. The JCC did not permit costs of copies from third parties, finding that the copies were not relevant to the issues the E/C prevailed on, as the copies were obtained years before the statute of limitations defense became viable. Ultimately, the JCC awarded the E/C $544.75 in taxable costs, for an adjuster’s deposition and for a doctor’s deposition. Click here to view Order |