Disability Law

Burdens of Proof, Standards of Review for Attorney's Fees, Costs

By David A. McCranie, Esq.

The standard of review employed by the First DCA is often critical to the outcome of the case.  In Moore v. Hillsborough Co. School Bd., for example, the court noted that a JCC's decision denying costs and an upward departure from the statutory attorney's fee schedule (in a pre-2003 case) is reviewed for "abuse of discretion."  Under that standard of review, the court held that the JCC did not abuse his discretion in refusing to depart from the statutory fee schedule and in failing to award costs associated with legal assistants where the claimant did not satisfy her burden of proving that the time spent by the assistants was nonclerical.

On the other hand, the court held that the JCC erred "as a matter of law" in declining to award reimbursement for certain deposition costs if the testimony was used in any way to support the award of benefits.

Full post as published by Florida Workers’ Compensation Law Blog on September 09, 2008 (boomark / email).