NY judge prefers open records in Sept. 11 cases
National News
A federal judge who rejected a Sept. 11 health settlement says he would prefer more open records in litigation stemming from the World Trade Center attack and might consider unsealing all records.
Judge Alvin Hellerstein commented Thursday after hearing lawyers argue whether a settlement related to claims of property damages resulting from the terrorist attacks should be public.
A settlement of most of the property claims has been kept secret while Hellerstein decides what should be put on the public record.
Lawyers for insurance companies that have settled have argued for secrecy, saying it was a private deal involving sophisticated commercial plaintiffs.
A lawyer for developer Larry Silverstein, who has not settled property claims, has argued that the settlement be made public.
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Workers’ Compensation Subrogation of Administrative Fees and Costs
When a worker covered by workers’ compensation makes a claim against a third party, the workers’ compensation insurance retains the right to subrogate against any recovery from that third party for all benefits paid to or on behalf of a claimant injured at work. When subrogating for more than basic medical and indemnity benefits, the Texas workers’ compensation subrogation statute provides that “the net amount recovered by a claimant in a third‑party action shall be used to reimburse the carrier for benefits, including medical benefits that have been paid for the compensable injury.” TX Labor Code § 417.002.
In fact, all 50 states provide for similar subrogation. However, none of them precisely outlines which payments or costs paid by a compensation carrier constitute “compensation” and can be recovered. The result is industry-wide confusion and an ongoing debate and argument with claimants’ attorneys over what can and can’t be included in a carrier’s lien for recovery purposes.
In addition to medical expenses, death benefits, funeral costs and/or indemnity benefits for lost wages and loss of earning capacity resulting from a compensable injury, workers’ compensation insurance carriers also expend considerable dollars for case management costs, medical bill audit fees, rehabilitation benefits, nurse case worker fees, and other similar fees. They also incur other expenses in conjunction with the handling and adjusting of workers’ compensation claims. Workers’ compensation carriers typically assert, of course, that, they are entitled to reimbursement for such expenditures when it recovers its workers’ compensation lien. Injured workers and their attorneys disagree.