08-5083 JOYCE BOOHER, v. PERKINS RESTAURANT & BAKERY/RISK MANAGEMENT LTD. AGENT FOR ZURICH INSURANCE

State: Florida

Court: Florida First District Court

Docket No: 08-5083

Case Date: 07/08/2009

Preview:IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF APPEAL FIRST DISTRICT, STATE OF FLORIDA NOT FINAL UNTIL TIME EXPIRES TO FILE MOTION FOR REHEARING AND DISPOSITION THEREOF IF FILED

JOYCE BOOHER, Appellant, v. PERKINS RESTAURANT & BAKERY/ RISK MANAGEMENT LTD. AGENT FOR ZURICH INSURANCE, Appellees. _____________________________/ Opinion filed July 8, 2009.

CASE NO. 1D08-5083

An appeal from an order of the Judge of Compensation Claims. E. Douglas Spangler, Jr., Judge. Brian O. Sutter, Port Charlotte, and Bill McCabe, Longwood, for Appellant. Don W. Allen of The Allen Law Firm, Oviedo, for Appellees.

PER CURIAM. Claimant appeals an order of the Judge of Compensation Claims (JCC) finding, in part, that the major contributing cause (MCC) of her need for surgery

was not the workplace accident. We reverse and remand this case for further proceedings. A JCC errs in determining an issue not before him. E.g., Reynolds v. Skagfield Corp., 887 So. 2d 434, 435 (Fla. 1st DCA 2004). Claims that have not gone through the mediation process are not ripe for adjudication. Farnam v. U.S. Sugar Corp., 34 Fla. L. Weekly D509, D510 (Fla. 1st DCA 2009). A JCC errs by addressing claims that are not ripe. Id. Here, the MCC of the need for surgery was not before the JCC because, as Claimant conceded at the final hearing, Claimant had not included this surgery in her petition for benefits (PFB), pretrial stipulation, or trial memorandum. Moreover, the issue was not procedurally ripe because, as it was not included in the PFB, and the mediation was on the issues raised in the PFB, it had not been mediated. REVERSED and REMANDED. BARFIELD, PADOVANO, and LEWIS, JJ., CONCUR.

2

Download 08-5083 JOYCE BOOHER, v. PERKINS RESTAURANT & BAKERY/RISK MANAGEMENT LTD. AG