Industry Criticizes Patel v. Home Depot Ruling

Industry commentators are reacting with bewilderment and sharp criticism to a decision by an Illinois appellate court last month that an employer could not avoid paying an award of benefits to its injured worker, even though it had overpaid the amount he was owed by nearly $10,000. The court also imposed costs, fees and penalties for the nonpayment. Chicago attorney Eugene Keefe of Keefe, Campbell & Associates remarked on Friday that the 1st District Court of Appeal decision in Patel v. Home Depot USA was "just crazy." The court's Feb. 2 ruling, posting by the court last Thursday, dete...