The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case that some attorneys fear may have a “chilling effect” on lawyers representing injured workers.
The justices granted allocatur Tuesday in County of Allegheny v. Workers’ Compensation Appeal Board (Parker) to review a Commonwealth Court decision that said a lawyer may be ordered to pay the employer’s attorney fees for unreasonable contest when it prevails on appeal. The justices agreed to hear argument specifically on the question of whether the case was wrongly decided, and “whether the disgorgement and return of unreasonable contest attorney’s fees when the employer ultimately prevails is better left to the legislature rather than the courts.”
