$215,000 Settlement: Lifting Injury, Multiple Surgeries 

What Happened 

Our client suffered a serious lifting injury in the course and scope of his employment in Florida. What began as a single workplace incident developed, over the life of the claim, into a case defined by multiple surgical procedures and the kind of ongoing medical exposure that does not resolve, it accumulates. 

Conservative treatment failed to provide lasting relief, and as the underlying pathology progressed, his treating physicians recommended surgical intervention. That first surgery was not the last. Additional procedures were required, each one carrying its own recovery period, its own complications to monitor, and its own implications for future medical care. 

By the time the case reached resolution, the medical history was complete enough that the realistic question was no longer whether our client had a compensable injury. It was what the rest of his medical future looked like, and how to structure a resolution that protected him. 

What the Carrier Argued 

In Florida workers’ compensation claims involving multiple surgeries, the carrier’s position rarely stays static. As procedures accumulate, carriers commonly shift from disputing compensability to disputing causation on the next procedure, the next referral, the next prescription. 

Every disputed authorization is a wedge. Left unchallenged, those wedges compound, and a worker who is lawfully entitled to ongoing medical care under § 440.13 can find himself or herself in opposition of the system that was supposed to take care of him or her. 

What We Proved 

Thomas Scully built the case around the documented continuity between the original workplace accident and every subsequent surgical procedure. Under Florida Statute § 440.13, an injured worker is entitled to all medically necessary treatment that is causally related to the compensable accident, and the burden of establishing that causal chain falls on the medical evidence.  

That meant reconstructing the full treatment timeline, tying each surgical recommendation back to objective findings traceable to the original injury, and confronting any “new injury” or “major contributing cause” arguments head-on with the authorized treating physicians’ records. Where the carrier sought to narrow the scope of authorized care, we used the statutory framework—and the medical proof—to expand it. 

When the case moved toward resolution, the structure of the settlement mattered as much as the dollar figure. With an extensive medical history and ongoing care needs, a Florida workers’ comp settlement of this kind has to account for: 

• Medicare Secondary Payer compliance, including a Medicare Set-Aside arrangement where appropriate, so that future Medicare coverage of the injury is not jeopardized; 

• A clear allocation between indemnity and medical proceeds; 

• Attorney fees and costs handled under § 440.34; and 

• A washout of future exposure that reflects what the claim would have cost the carrier had it stayed open. 

The $215,000 figure was the product of that structure, built around the specific economics of this client’s claim. 

What This Result Meant 

For our client, it delivered a meaningful lump-sum recovery on top of the medical care and benefits already received over the life of the claim, and it gave him the autonomy to make his own decisions about his future medical care rather than continuing to navigate authorization disputes with a carrier whose interests were not aligned with his own. 

That kind of finality has value beyond the dollar figure. It lets the injured worker move forward. 

The Takeaway for Other Injured Workers 

A Florida workers’ compensation case can still be worth pursuing if the original injury is generating ongoing medical needs, if the carrier is denying authorizations, or if a resolution would serve the worker better than continued claim management. The statute of limitations on Florida workers’ comp benefits is not what most people assume, and the right legal review can identify value where a worker has been told there is none. 

If your workers’ comp claim has been open and you are still dealing with denied surgeries, fights over authorization, or pressure to settle for less than the claim is worth, talk to us. 

Hurt at Work? Talk to Berlin Law Firm 

If you have suffered a serious injury on the job in Florida, the steps you take next can shape what your case is worth for the rest of your life. Berlin Law Firm focuses only on Florida workers’ compensation, and our team includes attorneys with deep experience on both sides of the system. 

Consultations are free, and under Florida law there is no fee unless we recover benefits for you. 

Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Each workers’ compensation case is evaluated on its own facts, including the type and severity of injury, the worker’s age and pre-injury wages, the carrier’s defenses, and the medical evidence available. The settlement described above reflects circumstances unique to this case. 

Your Attorney

Thomas F. Scully, Esq.

Trial & Appellate Attorney · Workers’ Compensation

Thomas Scully has practiced Florida workers’ compensation exclusively for more than 25 years, including 12 years as a trial and appellate attorney for a major Florida workers’ compensation carrier. He has successfully argued numerous cases at the First District Court of Appeal, the appellate court for Florida workers’ compensation, and brings that appellate-caliber preparation to every case at Berlin Law Firm. He represents injured workers in catastrophic, denied, and contested claims from the firm’s Sarasota and Tampa offices.

Education & Recognition

• J.D., St. Thomas University School of Law · B.A., State University of New York at Albany
• Admitted to The Florida Bar, 1997
• Member, Workers’ Compensation Section of The Florida Bar
• Speaker at 100+ Florida workers’ compensation seminars

Call Tom — (941) 777-7000 [email protected] View Full Bio →