By Judge Dale Tipps, Murfreesboro

I read a couple of news articles recently about something called “relational diversity.” Researchers have noticed a correlation between the number of social interactions with strangers and levels of satisfaction, happiness, and well-being. They found that, in addition to our regular contact with friends, family, and colleagues, conversations with strangers builds a sense of community and belonging.

It occurred to me that this might be why I enjoy settlement approval hearings more than one might expect. I get to meet people from a variety of locales and backgrounds, and it’s a rare settlement day that I don’t hear at least one funny or interesting story from the claimant. (The fact that these interactions are structured and brief is a bonus for an introvert like me.)

I trust the attorneys attending settlement hearings already find similar satisfaction in at least some parts of the process. To help you achieve more, or at least make the process smoother, here are some suggestions and observations in no particular order.

• If you are presenting an affidavit settlement for an employee who cannot attend in person, please use the Court’s template affidavit found here. Of course, you should modify it as necessary, including making it a Rule 72 declaration if notarization is a problem.
• In those offices that ask for documents in advance, please wait until you have all the information to complete them before submitting them for review. Sending incomplete documents will just delay the process.
• Be mindful of the statutory requirements for disputed settlements. Short version: you must have an actual dispute over compensability or amount of compensation due. Longer version: Judge Lowe’s blog post Templates Revised for Disputed Cases: No Doubt .
• If you’re attending a settlement in an office that schedules the hearing for a specific time, the attorney(s) and the employee should arrive early to review and sign the documents. The time you are assigned is the time you should be walking into the courtroom.
• If you have a closed medical settlement, please bear in mind the standard the judge must apply: that “the employee is receiving, substantially, the benefits provided by this chapter.” That the employee has reached maximum medical improvement, has been released by the doctor, or wishes to direct her own treatment are not relevant to this determination. The Court will always focus on whether the settlement amount is substantially the value of lifetime medical treatment. In most cases, this will require a medical opinion or some other kind of reliable information as to the likelihood and/or cost of future care.
• Please take care with the accuracy of the settlement documents. I’ve seen several settlements lately where the factual statements in the settlement agreement don’t match the supporting documentation or the employee’s testimony. One common problem seems to be misstatements about the employee’s return-to-work status, which turn out be inaccurate during the hearing. Nobody wants to sign court documents that are untruthful, so your drafting should carefully incorporate the particular facts of each case.
• Finally, I hear some of you struggling during the hearing with medical terms, and many of us would be in the same boat. If you find it difficult to say that the employee was diagnosed with “chondrocalcinosis with chondromalacia of the patellofemoral joint and prepatellar calcific tendinitis,” it’s perfectly okay to say he injured his knee.

I hope you find some of these suggestions useful and that you find ways to enjoy this part of your practice. And I look forward to seeing you and your strangers every Monday and Friday.

Photo by Kim Weaver, paralegal, Knoxville.