Jones v. Shadow Trailers, Inc., CASE NO. 1D13-4168

• Court: Court of Appeal of Florida (US)
• Writing for the Court: PER CURIAM
• Decision Date: 18 March 2014
• Parties: TRESSEY JONES, Appellant, v. SHADOW TRAILERS, INC./USIS, Appellees.
• Docket Number: CASE NO. 1D13-4168

TRESSEY JONES, Appellant,
v.
SHADOW TRAILERS, INC./USIS, Appellees.

CASE NO. 1D13-4168

DISTRICT COURT OF APPEAL FIRST DISTRICT, STATE OF FLORIDA

Opinion filed March 18, 2014

NOT FINAL UNTIL TIME EXPIRES TO FILE MOTION FOR REHEARING AND DISPOSITION THEREOF IF FILED

An appeal from an order of the Judge of Compensation Claims.
Marjorie Renee Hill, Judge.

Date of Accident: January 29, 2013.

Kelli Biferie Hastings of the Law Office of Kelli B. Hastings, PLLC, Orlando, and Sean McCormack of Colling, Gilbert, Wright & Carter, Orlando, for Appellant.

Michael D. Quiggins of Eraclides, Gelman, Hall, Indek, Goodman & Waters, LLC, Tallahassee, and Cindy R. Galen of Eraclides, Gelman, Hall, Indek, Goodman & Waters, LLC, Sarasota, for Appellees.

PER CURIAM.

In this workers' compensation case, Claimant challenges an order of the Judge of Compensation Claims (JCC) denying his motion for "medical-only"

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attorney's fees, payable by the Employer/Carrier (E/C) as provided for in section 440.34(3)(a), Florida Statutes (2012). We affirm.

The parties agree that the E/C conceded Claimant's entitlement to the benefits claimed in Claimant's petition for benefits, eight days after it received the petition. Section 440.34(3)(a) allows for E/C-paid attorney's fees where a claimant "successfully asserts a petition for medical benefits only." Claimant argues that he is due E/C-paid fees under Allen v. Tyrone Square 6 AMC Theaters, 731 So. 2d 699, 699 (Fla. 1st DCA 1999), wherein this court considered section 440.34(3)(a), and held that "[w]hen a specific request for reasonable and necessary medical care is made, the employer is under an obligation to provide the benefits within a reasonable time - whether a petition for medical benefits is ever filed, or not ."

Allen was decided before a 2002 amendment to section 440.34(3), which added the language that, "[r]egardless of the date benefits were initially requested, attorney's fees shall not attach under this subsection until 30 days after the date the carrier or employer, if self-insured, receives the petition." See Ch. 02-236, § 13, at 1736, Laws of Fla. This amendment is substantive, see ...