Judicial discretion

Just APPROVED FOR PUBLICATION 12/13/2019 a NJ Appellate case defining expectations and focussing on: judicial discretion, medical treatment and disallowed prescription opioids that do not ”cure and relieve.”

Court Has Discretion to Award Counsel Fee Based on Dependent's Life Expectancy

After awarding dependent benefits under N.J.S.A. 34:15-13 to the surviving spouse of a worker who succumbed to an occupational disease, the judge of compensation awarded counsel fees based on the spouse's expected lifetime – in accordance with a 1995 amendment to N.J.S.A. 34:15-13(j) which provided that compensation shall be paid to a surviving spouse "during the entire period of survivorship" – as determined from the table of mortality and life expectancy printed as Appendix I to the New Jersey Rules of Court.

Workers’ Compensation and Judicial Discretion - Unpublished Decision

Even if something looks, sound and smells correct, judges must use their discretion within the bounds of due process restrictions. The road to final justice in workers’ compensation can sometimes be a long one.