On Dec. 1, 2009, a jury awarded $70 million to a man who claimed his workers’ compensation carrier wrongfully withheld paying for his job retraining. In 2005, former maintenance worker Charles Tate began participating in a rehabilitative training program to become a real estate agent after an on-the-job accident left him unable to do manual labor. To pay for his expenses during training, he applied for supplementary income benefits through Discover Property & Casualty Insurance Co., but the insurer disputed the claim. The state workers’ compensation division ruled in Tate’s favor six times, but Discover continued to delay payments. Tate ultimately sued Discover and its claims administrator, JI Specialty Services. The jury found Discover and JI knowingly engaged in unfair or deceptive acts and ordered them to pay $20 million for Tate’s mental anguish, $20 million in attorneys’ fees and $30 million in punitive damages.
Tate v. Discover Property & Casualty Insurance Co, et al., No. 2008-CI-21040
