Cases

Employer/carrier and claimant negotiated a settlement for $17,500 inclusive of attorney fees and costs. JCC entered an order enforcing the settlement terms. On appeal, claimant’s attorney argued that since the attorney’s fees and costs had not been stipulated to, an "essential term" of the settlement had not been agreed to and accordingly, the settlement agreement was unenforceable. Court, in rejecting the claimant’s attorney’s argument and affirming the judge’s enforcement of the settlement, determined that all essential terms of the settlement had in fact been agreed to. The claimant agreed to pay his attorney for fees and costs and although at the time of the settlement those sums had not been quantified and may have been in dispute, there was no question that the extent of the employer/carrier’s liability had been agreed to. Accordingly, all essential elements of the settlement had been agreed to.