Johnson v. Orleans Parish School Bd.

932 So. 2d 687, 2006 La. App. LEXIS 1197, 2006 WL 1382199
Louisiana Court of Appeal·Decided May 3, 2006·No. 2005-CA-1038·Published·Cited by 3 cases

Opinion

932 So.2d 687 (2006)

Sharvonne JOHNSON
v.
ORLEANS PARISH SCHOOL BOARD.

No. 2005-CA-1038.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Fourth Circuit.

May 3, 2006.

*688 John L. Young, Law Offices of John L. Young, New Orleans, Counsel for Sharvonne Johnson.

Michael B. Forbes, Hammond, Counsel for Sharvonne Johnson.

Philip A. Costa, Costa Law Firm (APLC), New Orleans, Counsel for Defendant/Appellant.

(Court Composed of Judge PATRICIA RIVET MURRAY, Judge TERRI F. LOVE, and Judge MAX N. TOBIAS, Jr.)

MAX N. TOBIAS JR., Judge.

In this workers' compensation case, the employer, the Orleans Parish School Board ("OPSB"), appeals the judgment of the Office of Workers' Compensation ("OWC") rendered in favor of Sharvonne Johnson ("Johnson"). For the reasons assigned, we affirm in part and reverse in part.

*689 On 13 January 2000, Johnson was involved in an automobile accident while operating a school bus in the course of her employment with the OPSB. Johnson began receiving workers' compensation benefits in January 2000.

Johnson, through her attorney, John L. Young, filed a tort suit in the Civil District Court for the Parish of Orleans against the driver of the other vehicle involved in the accident. The OPSB intervened in that action. Johnson received a settlement check from the third-party tortfeasor's insurer for the policy limits of $25,000.00. The OPSB did not endorse the check. In response thereto, Johnson filed a Disputed Claim for Compensation with the OWC on 13 May 2003.[1]

Johnson's workers' compensation benefits were terminated on 3 October 2003, following the issuance of a "Release to Return to Work" issued to Johnson on 1 October 2003. At trial, the parties stipulated that (a) Johnson was involved in a work-related accident, (b) her average weekly wage was $332.40 at the time of the accident, and (c) the OPSB paid in excess of $40,096 in indemnity benefits to Johnson and $55,252.01 in medical benefits for Johnson.

After considering the stipulations and hearing testimony from Johnson, the trial court rendered judgment decreeing: (1) Johnson did not carry her burden of proof of entitlement to temporary total disability benefits ("TTD"); (2) the OPSB carried it's burden of proof through medical records to establish that Johnson was able to perform sedentary work; (3) the OPSB did not timely inform Johnson of any available job positions so that she could apply for appropriate work; (4) Johnson was entitled to supplemental earning benefits ("SEB") at the full TTD rate, from the date of indemnity termination in October 2003 and continuing; (5) Johnson's attorney in the tort action, John L. Young, was entitled to an attorney's fee of $8,333.00 (one-third of the $25,000.00 settlement) and to reimbursement for all medical expenses paid by him; (6) the OPSB was ordered to pay for the physical therapy and the updated MRI recommended by Johnson's treating physician; and, (7) the OPSB was ordered to pay for Johnson's vocational rehabilitation. The OPSB appealed, asserting two assignments of error: (a) the trial court erred in not properly applying the provisions of La. R.S. 23:1103 with regard to the award of attorney's fees in the tort action or La. R.S. 23:1102 concerning the third-party settlement; and (b) the trial court erred in finding that Johnson was entitled to SEB.

We review the judgment of the OWC applying a "manifest error/ clearly wrong" standard of review. Dean v. Southmark Const., 03-1051, p. 7 (La.7/6/04), 879 So.2d 112, 117.

I.

The OPSB asserts that because it paid in excess of $95,000.00 to Johnson in benefits, it is entitled to the entire $25,000.00 settlement proceeds in accordance with La. R.S. 23:1103(A)(1), which states that in the event an employee recovers damages against a third-party tortfeasor, "the claim of the employer for the compensation actually paid shall take precedence over that of the injured employee or his dependent; and if the damages are not sufficient or are sufficient only to reimburse the employer for the compensation which he has actually paid, such damages shall be assessed *690 solely in his favor." La. R.S. 23:1103(C)(1) further provides that "the intervenor shall only be responsible for a share of the reasonable legal fees and costs incurred by the attorney retained by the plaintiff, which portion shall not exceed one-third of the intervenor's recovery for prejudgment payments of prejudgment damages."

Johnson counters that the trial court correctly awarded Mr. Young an attorney's fee arising out of the tort suit because he was solely responsible for obtaining the settlement and because counsel for the OPSB did not provide any assistance in procuring the third-party's funds. Johnson concedes that she is not personally entitled to any of the settlement proceeds, but argues that her attorney in the tort action is entitled "Moody fees."[2]

While we agree that Mr. Young may be entitled to an attorneys' fees for his work in the tort action, we find that the OWC does not have jurisdiction to award "Moody fees" pursuant to La. R.S. 23:1103(C). Fleniken v. Safeway Transp., Inc., 02-2389 (La.App. 1 Cir. 7/2/03), 859 So.2d 50.

La. R.S. 23:1103(C)(1) provides:

If either the employer or employee intervenes in the third party suit filed by the other, the intervenor shall only be responsible for a share of the reasonable legal fees and costs incurred by the attorney retained by the plaintiff, which portion shall not exceed one-third of the intervenor's recovery for prejudgment payments or prejudgment damages. The amount of the portion of attorney fees shall be determined by the district court based on the proportionate services of the attorneys which benefited or augmented the recovery from the third party. The employee as intervenor shall not be responsible for the employer's attorney fees attributable to postjudgment [sic] damages nor will the employer as intervenor be responsible for the attorney fees attributable to the credit given to the employer under Subsection A of this Section. Costs shall include taxable court costs as well as the fees of experts retained by the plaintiff. The pro rata share of the intervenor's costs shall be based on intervenor's recovery of prejudgment payments or prejudgment damages. [Emphasis added.]

In Fleniken, the court stated:

The plain language in La. R.S. 23:1103(C) requires that attorney fees must be determined by the district court. The word "shall" is mandatory and the word "may" is permissive. La. R.S. 1:3. The phrase "[a]ttorney fees shall be determined by the district court" is mandatory language. In construing legislative enactments, we must assume that the Legislature intended every word, phrase, and clause to have some meaning and that none was inserted by accident. Consequently, we must construe every provision of a statute in such a manner so as to give it some effect. Hoag v. State ex rel. Kennedy, 01-1076, p. 13 (La.App. 1 Cir. 11/20/02), 836 So.2d 207, 219, writ denied, 02-3199 (La.3/28/03), 840 So.2d 570; citing Elevating Boats, Inc. v. St. Bernard Parish, 00-3518, p. 18 (La.9/5/01), 795 So.2d 1153, 1166. And so construing, it is clear that the Office of Workers' Compensation *691 lacks jurisdiction in this regard.
Fleniken argues that OWC has jurisdiction because of the language in La. R.S.

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Johnson v. Orleans Parish School Bd., 932 So. 2d 687, 2006 La. App. LEXIS 1197, 2006 WL 1382199 (La. Ct. App. 2006).

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