GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
SESSION 1999

SESSION LAW 1999-194
HOUSE BILL 980

AN ACT TO ALLOW JUDICIAL DISCRETION IN DETERMINING THE AMOUNT OF SUBROGATION OF EMPLOYERS' LIENS IN ACTIONS AGAINST THIRD PARTIES UNDER THE WORKERS' COMPENSATION ACT.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

Section 1.  G.S. 97-10.2(j) reads as rewritten:
"(j)	Notwithstanding any other subsection in this section, in the event that a judgment is obtained by the employee in an action against a third party, or in the event that a settlement has been agreed upon by the employee and the third party, either party may apply to the resident superior court judge of the county in which the cause of action arose, where the injured employee resides or the presiding judge before whom the cause of action is pending, to determine the subrogation amount.  After notice to the employer and the insurance carrier, after an opportunity to be heard by all interested parties, and with or without the consent of the employer, the judge shall determine, in his discretion, the amount, if any, of the employer's lien, whether based on accrued or prospective workers' compensation benefits, and the amount of cost of the third-party litigation to be shared between the employee and employer. The judge shall consider the anticipated amount of prospective compensation the employer or workers' compensation carrier is likely to pay to the employee in the future, the net recovery to plaintiff, the likelihood of the plaintiff prevailing at trial or on appeal, the need for finality in the litigation, and any other factors the court deems just and reasonable, in determining the appropriate amount of the employer's lien. If the matter is pending in the federal district court such determination may be made by a federal district court judge of that division."
Section 2.  This act is effective when it becomes law and applies to judgments or settlements entered against third parties on or after that date pursuant to G.S. 97-10.2. 
In the General Assembly read three times and ratified this the 9th day of June, 1999.

s/	Dennis A. Wicker
President of the Senate

s/	James B. Black
Speaker of the House of Representatives

s/	James B. Hunt, Jr.
Governor

Approved 10:15 p.m. this 18th day of June, 1999