On September 11, 2007, the Georgia Court of Appeals issued its decision in Paschall Truck Lines v. Kirkland. In this case, the injured worker was hurt in a truck accident when another commercial vehicle struck the vehicle he was driving. He collected filed a Georgia workers’ compensation claim and a Kentucky workers’ compensation claim. When the Georgia personal injury / truck accident claim settled for $100,000.00, the workers’ comp. insurance company sought to recover money based on a purported lien.
This case is governed by O.C.G.A. 34-9-11.1(b) which states that for an insurer to successfully intervene and recuperate money paid to an injured worker in a third party personal injury case, the insurer must show that the injured worker was fully and completely compensated for economic and non-economic damages.
This case was a victory for the injured worker. Workers’ compensation insurers in Georgia often try to get paid back from personal injury settlements or verdicts that injured employees bring against third-parties. In some states, the workers’ compensation insurance company has strong rights of recovery. This is not the case in Georgia. I have been successful in my handling of similar cases in maximizing the recovery on behalf of my clients. Interestingly, some claimants’ attorneys are especially loathe to repay a workers’ compensation insurer because they feel the fruit of their efforts (i.e. compensation) should go to their clients and not the insurance company.
