New Strategies Needed in Post-Castellanos Era, Defense Attorney Says

Challenging petitions for small amounts of benefits may no longer make sense for Florida employers in the aftermath of the Castellanos case, which lifted a cap on attorney fees, a workers’ comp defense lawyer said last week. Attorney Daniel Jaffe, a shareholder with Rissman, Barrett, Hurt, Donahue, McLain & Mangan in Tampa, said the Castellanos ruling has already caused the number of petitions for workers’ comp benefits to surge. The number of petitions increased from 60,021 in 2014-15 to 67,265 in 2015-16, a 12% spurt, Jaffe said, citing data from the Florida Office of Judge...