Announcements

 Meet the Experts returns May 15, 2026 at 12:00 noon, by Zoom!   Afterthoughts that Undermine a Successful Mediation Meet the Experts Series Moderator: Stuart F. Suskin, Esq.- Private Mediator; Panel: The Honorable Lourdes M. Sancerni, Judge of Compensation Claims, Orlando Kate Marshman, Esq.- State Mediator, Tallahassee; Heather Byrer Carbone, Esq.- E/C Attorney, Jacksonville; Ed Williamson, Esq.- Claimant Attorney, Jacksonville; May 15, 2026- Noon to 1:00pm TITLE: Afterthoughts that Undermine a Successful Mediation This program is designed to highlight the pitfalls and challenges of underprepared or unprepared mediation participants. There will be discussion of appropriate pre-mediation communications, setting of expectations, management of expectations, and working through the unexpected or unprepared. The attendee should glean ideas about how and when to pre...

It was a great conclusion to the Scholars 2026 program yesterday. Congratulations to all of the Scholars. Fond transition from Hon. Ralph Humphries and Mediator Kate Marshman. The 2027 committee and schedule will be discussed soon. Those interested in participating should contact any Judge of Compensation Claims for more information. Congratulations Scholars!

The Statewide Nominating Commission for Judges of Compensation Claims (SNCJCC) will meet Friday, April 24, 2026, at 09:30 Eastern Time, at the Omni Orlando Resort at ChampionsGate, 1500 Masters Blvd, Championsgate, FL 33896 (room to be announced) The Applicants for the ORL appointment are: Natalie Cavallaro Silvia Hoeg Kellye Shoemaker

The April 17, 2026 (noon Eastern program will feature advice on preparing for, taking, and presenting expert deposition testimony! Meet the Experts How to take a logical, focused, and effective expert deposition time and again. Friday, April 17, 2026 Link below This one-hour CLE program provides Florida workers' compensation practitioners with a structured, practical framework for preparing, conducting, and following up on medical witness depositions. The course addresses the full lifecycle of expert medical testimony — from pre-deposition preparation and records review through examination strategy and post-deposition considerations. Equal attention is given to substantive litigation strategy and the ethical obligations governing attorney conduct during depositions, including obligations to the tribunal, candor to the court, and professional conduct toward opposing counsel and witnesses. The program draws on real-world scenarios in Florida workers' compensation proceedings ...

Mar 20, 2026 12:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada) Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/2777573448?omn=87480220916 Meeting ID: 277 757 3448

  Time: Feb 20, 2026 12:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada) https://us02web.zoom.us/j/2777573448?omn=89237927737 Meeting ID: 277 757 3448 https://us02web.zoom.us/j/2777573448?omn=89237927737 Meeting ID: 277 757 3448 One tap mobile +13052241968,,2777573448# US +13126266799,,2777573448# US (Chicago) Approved for CLE Credit: 1.0 General Dawn Traverso received her Bachelor’s degree from Washington & Jefferson College in 1992 and her law degree from D.C. Law in 1995. She is a member of The Florida Bar, the U.S. District Court for the Middle and Southern Districts of Florida, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit and the Supreme Court of the United States. Dawn concentrates her practice in the defense of workers’ compensation, and labor and employment matters. Dawn is the Managing Partner of the Miami/Fort Lauderdale Office of Eraclides, Gelman, Hall, Indek, Goodman, Waters & Traverso. Dawn is a Past Chair of the Workers’ Compensation Section of The Florida ...

Meet the Experts! More on that at the close (below), but first some exposition of the origins. This program is the brainchild of Stuart Suskin, and to understand it, you must know Stuart. (Meet Stuart in the December 2025 unCOMPlex podcast on YouTube - discussing this program ); See the brochure here . A long time ago, in another galaxy, I ran into Stuart Suskin. He was a pushy, insistent (made me come to Gainesville instead of appearing by telegraph), and energetic mediator in the early days of mandatory Florida Workers’ Compensation mediation. I represented some clients in Gainesville back in the day, and would travel on horseback to mediate those cases, until the iron horse came to Florida (but that is another story). Long before that, Stuart arrived in Florida in 1513 with Juan Ponce de Leon. Juan was purportedly looking for gold, but Stuart was merely searching for disputes that needed discussion or resolution. His near-pathological love of resolving disputes, no ma...

The Statewide Judicial Nominating Commission for Judges of Compensation Claims met in Orlando on August 18, 2025, to consider the reappointment applications of seven judges. The following were nominated for reappointment: Honorable Eduardo Almeyda (MIA), Honorable Walter Havers (MIA), Honorable Jeffrey Jacobs (MIA), Honorable David Langham (PNS/TLH), Honorable Jacquelyn Newman (TLH); Honorable Neal Pitts (ORL); and Honorable Timothy Stanton (JAX).

The Workers’ Compensation Institute is coming up in August. It is unfathomably close already. There will be an OJCC meet the Judges and Mediators on Sunday, August 17, 2025, from 5:00 to 6:00 in Anaheim, Atlanta, and Boston rooms in the Hall of Cities at the Marriott. The Statewide Nominating Commission is meeting Monday, August 18, 2025, in Grand Ballrooms 10, 11, and 12. OJCC Speakers include (only events open to the public are listed): Sunday, August 17, 2025, Grand Ballroom 8B – Professional                               Mediation Institute 09:00 Sagely Advice for Mediators, Attorneys, and Adjusters                      Hon. Erik Grindal                      Hon. Thomas Hedler              ...

Following an inaugural year for our OJCC Scholars program, which we thought was non-replicable, we have selected the participants for OJCC Scholars 2026! We will kick off our nine-month program on August 19, 2025, at the Workers' Compensation Institute in Orlando. The depth of this community's future leadership bench is simply amazing, and it is a privilege to work with these exceptional community members as they evolve, grow, and lead! For more on the program, see The Scholar's First (August 2024) and  Scholars 2025 Concludes (April 2025). The 2026 Scholars are: Holley Akers, O'Rourke and Akers, Jacksonville; Florida Coastal School of Law, 2010 Brena Bergman, Goodman McGuffey, Orlando; University of Florida College of Law, 2020 Natalie Cavallaro, Morgan & Morgan, Tallahassee; Cooley Law School, 2015 Isidora Eickelmann, Work Injury Rights, Coral Springs; Florida International University, College of Law, 2015 Ingrid Hagerty, Moran, Kidd, Lyons, et. al., Miami Lakes...

The Florida Office of Judges of Compensation Claims announces the 2025 OJCC Academy program! The Orlando District Office  will host two programs produced by the Academy Steering Committee. Each is IN PERSON in Orlando, not available by Zoom. The two programs are: The 2025 Paralegal Masterclass "Getting it Done" - on October 23, 2025; 1:30 to 4:30. Masterclass application here . The OJCC Work Comp Academy "The Next Generation" - on October 24, 2025; 8:00-4:00. Attorney application here . The Paralegal Masterclass is designed to be a deep dive into the challenges of Florida workers' compensation litigation - specifically for the non-attorney. There will be information on process, procedure, and the e-JCC filing system. This is now approved for CLE for attorneys or Registered Paralegals!     Application and details for the Paralegal Masterclass here . The Work Comp Academy is in its third year, and continuing a path of excellence. The program is designed for the...

The OJCC team spent a year planning and implementing the OJCC Scholars 2025 program. It launched in August ( see Scholars First ) and induced 9 months of intensive introspection about this community and practice. We concluded at the Forum in April with two substantive presentations and an inspirational commencement speech by the inimitable Glen Weiland, Esq.  We are proud of this effort, this participation, and this achievement. We look now to launch the Scholars 2026. If you are interested, contact any Judge of Compensation Claims to be considered. All participants are nominated by the judges and selected by the Scholars Committee. Pictured from the commencement are:  Judge Ralph Humpries, Glenys Domingo, Aimee Gartland, Elizabeth Yohe, Spencer Shaw, Judge Margret Kerr, Aimee DeGuzman, Bryan Greenberg, Gabriela Sifontes, Mediator AnnaMarie Kim, Damon Pichoff, Stacey Laskin, Gina Jacobs, Glen Weiland, Judge Jonathan Walker, and Judge Langham. The OJCC Scholars program was an ...

In 1997-98, George Kagan was the editor of the 2oth Anniversary issue of the News & 440 Report. He devoted Volume XX, No. 1 and No. 2 to recounting the amazing history of the Florida Bar Workers' Compensation section.  He was celebrating his years as Editor and telling a story. George has always been exceptional at telling a story.  He noted that "there were side fluctuations in frequency and size of the" News between inception of the section and its decennial (1974-1984). He credited Steve Rissman as the first Editor until 1981, followed by Jonathan Alpert, Steve Kronenberg, and Peter Burkhart for a year each until George took over in 1984.  The issues include full verbatim republication of early Kagan articles, and mention of iconic figures like those above and Jack Miller, Al Frierson, and Stephen Slepin. There is credit for all these, but it can be said that the 440 Report as we now know it owes much to Mr. Kagan. This is echoed in the Volume XX, No.1 Editor notes...

About two years ago, the OJCC began offering attorneys the option to key settlement data (amounts) in the process of uploading Motions for Approval of Attorney Fees and Child Support. We are in the process of software updates that will soon make that data input a mandatory part of uploading those motions.  Separately, we are working on programming to do the same for Interim Attorney Fees and Side-stipulation Fees that accompany or are associated with Motions for Approval of Attorney Fees and Child Support. Watch e-JCC for news on these changes coming soon. 

March 2025     You Tube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c91j6xn26e4      Spotify https://open.spotify.com/episode/49bKrjxYwMu16QkhvhsRGV December 2024       YouTube         https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ab5Uk8CYhk4 October 2024      Spotify      https://open.spotify.com/episode/2Qkf7hkyyns8EbcHEVMIc6   September 2024      YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rzwrH3PCmzg&list=PLN_98Yq-m6iDLwW5UJ7sQEMALxOs_h0It&index=1      Spotify            https://open.spotify.com/episode/5kBKSCY6lI2N9b2yXFLsZY    August 2024 YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ec2dBXiiG-0&list=PLN_98Yq-m6iDLwW5UJ7sQEMALxOs_h0It&index=2      Spotify       https://open.spotify.com/episode/019YK7Y7syJGS86rIuazrm   WCI Special 2024      YouTube   https://www.youtube...

10.10.24 12:00 Office Closures regarding Milton amended: Ft. Lauderdale: October 9 and 10, 2024 Ft. Myers 12:00 p.m. October 7, through 11, 2024   Jacksonville: October 9 through 11, 2024 Miami:  October 9 and 10, 2024 Orlando:  12:00 p.m.   October 8,  through 11, 2024   St. Petersburg: October 7 through 11, 2024  Tampa: October 8 through 11, 2024 West Palm Beach : October 9 and 10, 2024   10.10.24 04:00 Milton came ashore as a category 3 and the impact was significant, despite Mike Tyson's efforts to fight the storm. There are just over 3 million accounts without electricity this morning.  More are likely as Milton moves off the east coast.  Undoubtedly there will be power crews at work today restoring. Search and rescue will also be underway as the sun rises. News reports over 125 tornados. There is rising water in many communities and significant rainfall as predicted. A crane collapse  and damage to Tropicana Field...