Tennessee § 50-6-240 - Approval or rejection of settlement agreements.

§ 50-6-240. Approval or rejection of settlement agreements.

The interested parties shall have the right to settle all matters of compensation between themselves, but all settlements shall be reduced to writing and shall be approved by a judge of the court of workers' compensation claims before they are binding on either party. It shall be the duty of the judge of the court of workers' compensation claims to whom any proposed settlement is presented for approval under this chapter, to examine the proposed settlement to determine whether the employee is receiving, substantially, the benefits provided by this chapter. Upon approving the settlement, a judgment shall be rendered on the settlement by the court of workers' compensation claims and duly entered by the clerk. The cost of the proceeding shall be borne by the employer. In all cases where the settlement proceedings or any other court proceedings for workers' compensation under this chapter involve a subsequent injury wherein the employee would be entitled to receive or is claiming compensation from the subsequent injury and vocational recovery fund provided for in § 50-6-208, the administrator shall be made a party defendant to the proceedings in an action filed by either the employer or the injured employee, and an attorney representing the bureau under the supervision of the attorney general and reporter shall represent the administrator in the proceeding. The court of workers' compensation claims, by its decree, shall determine the right of the employee to receive compensation from the fund. A workers' compensation judge shall approve or reject settlements submitted to the bureau within three (3) business days after the settlement has been received by the bureau and assigned to a workers' compensation judge for consideration. In approving settlements, a workers' compensation judge shall consider all pertinent factors and if the injured employee is not represented by counsel, then the workers' compensation judge shall thoroughly inform the employee of the scope of benefits available under this chapter and the employee's rights and the procedures necessary to protect those rights. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit the parties from compromising and settling the issue of future medical benefits at any time; provided, that the settlement agreement is approved by a judge of the court of workers' compensation claims, and includes a provision confirming that the employee has been informed of the potential consequences of the settlement, if any, with respect to medicare and TennCare benefits and liabilities. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, an employee who is determined to be permanently and totally disabled shall not be allowed to compromise and settle the employee's rights to future medical benefits. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, if there is a dispute between the parties as to whether a claim is compensable, or as to the amount of compensation due, the parties may settle the matter without regard to whether the employee is receiving substantially the benefits provided by this chapter; provided, that the settlement is determined by a workers' compensation judge to be in the best interest of the employee. No party may settle a claim for permanent disability benefits unless the settlement agreement has been approved by a workers' compensation judge. Any settlement agreement not approved pursuant to this section is void. Acts 1992, ch. 900, § 15; 1996, ch. 944, § 23; 2013, ch. 289, § 84; 2015, ch. 341, §§ 13, 15; 2016, ch. 816, § 2; 2017, ch. 344, § 1. Compiler's Notes. Prior to the 2013 amendment, the former provisions of this section related to settlement agreements reached at benefit review conferences, reports on unresolved issues and filing of agreements and reports. Acts 2013, ch. 289, § 103 provided that the act, which amended this section, shall be known and may be cited as the “Workers' Compensation Reform Act of 2013.” Amendments. The 2013 amendment, effective July 1, 2014, rewrote the section which read: “(a)(1) A dispute may be resolved either in whole or in part at the benefit review conference. If the conference results in the resolution of some of the disputed issues by mutual agreement or in a settlement, the workers' compensation specialist shall reduce the agreement or the settlement to writing. The workers' compensation specialist and each party shall sign the agreement or settlement. A settlement is not effective unless it is approved in accordance with § 50-6-206 , and takes effect on the date approved.“(2) The specialist shall note in a report on unresolved issues required by this section the failure of any party to furnish documents to the specialist on request by the specialist, to cooperate in scheduling, or to provide a representative who possessed settlement authority in attendance at the conference.“(b) If the dispute is not entirely resolved at the benefit review conference, the workers' compensation specialist shall prepare a written report that also includes:“(1) A statement of each agreed upon issue; and“(2) A statement of each issue raised but not agreed upon.“(c) The workers' compensation specialist shall file the signed agreement and the report with the commissioner and the court, as appropriate. Any party filing an action with a court of competent jurisdiction shall notify the division of the filing at the time of the filing. After receiving the notice, the division shall file within seven (7) days with such court any report on unresolved issues pursuant to this section resulting from a benefit review conference.” The 2015 amendment substituted “bureau” for “division” in (b) and added (f). The 2016 amendment rewrote (a) which read:“(a) A workers' compensation judge may approve a proposed settlement among the parties if:“(1) The settlement agreement has been signed by the parties; and“(2) The workers' compensation judge has determined that the employee is receiving, substantially, the benefits provided by this chapter, or, in cases subject to subsection (d), if the workers' compensation judge has determined that the settlement is in the best interest of the employee.”; added the first sentence in (d); and substituted “this section is void” for “this subsection (f) is void” at the end of (f). The 2017 amendment substituted “subsequent injury and vocational recovery fund” for “second injury fund” in the next to the last sentence of (a). Effective Dates. Acts 2013, ch. 289, § 106. July 1, 2014; provided, that, for purposes of promulgating rules and regulations, making appointments and making necessary provisions for the implementation of the act, the act shall take effect April 29, 2013. Acts 2015, ch. 341, § 19. May 4, 2015. Acts 2016, ch. 816, § 11. April 14, 2016. Acts 2017, ch. 344, § 12. May 9, 2017.