Board Rule 82. Statute of Limitation and Procedure for Filing Claims

(a) Any defense as to the time of filing a claim is waived unless it is made no later than the first hearing.

(b) A party filing a claim should file Form WC-14 with the Board and serve a copy on all other parties.

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O.C.G.A. § 34-9-245. Repayment of overpayment by claimant

Should the board find that a claimant has received an overpayment of income benefits from the employer, for any reason, the board shall have the authority to order repayment on terms acceptable to the parties or within the discretion of the board.  No claim for reimbursement shall be allowed where the application for reimbursement is filed more than two years from the date such overpayment was made.

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O.C.G.A. § 34-9-281. Prerequisites to compensation for occupational disease

(a)  Where the employer and employee are subject to this chapter, the disablement or death of an employee resulting from an occupational disease shall be treated as the occurrence of an injury by accident; and the employee or, in the case of his or her death, the employee's dependents shall be entitled to compensation as provided by this chapter.  The practice and procedure prescribed in this chapter shall apply to all the proceedings under this article except as otherwise provided.

(b)  Except as otherwise provided in this Code section, an employer shall be liable for compensation under this article only where:

(1)  The disease arose out of and in the course of the employment in which the employee was engaged under such employer, was contracted while the employee was so engaged, and has resulted from a hazard characteristic of the employment in excess of the hazards of such disease attending employment in general; and

(2)  The claim for disablement is filed within one year after the date the employee knew or, in the exercise of reasonable diligence, should have known of the disablement and its relationship to the employment; but in no event shall the claim for disablement be filed in excess of seven years after the last injurious exposure to the hazard of such disease in such employment; provided, however, that an employee with asbestosis or mesothelioma related to exposure to asbestos shall have one year from the date of first disablement after diagnosis of such disease to file a claim for disablement.  In cases of death where the cause of action was not barred during the employee's life, the claim must be filed within one year of the date of death.

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O.C.G.A. § 34-9-284. Liability of last employer; compensation based on average weekly wage

Where compensation is payable for an occupational disease, the employer in whose employment the employee was last injuriously exposed to the hazards of such disease and the insurance carrier, if any, by whom the employer was insured when such employee was last so exposed under such employer shall alone be liable therefor, without right of contribution from any prior employer or insurance carrier.  The amount of the compensation for any occupational disease shall be based upon the average weekly wages of the employee, as determined under Code Section 34-9-260.  The date upon which the employee first suffers disablement from the occupational disease or the last date the employee was employed by any employer, whichever date would provide the higher average weekly wage for such employee, shall be deemed the date of the injury for the purpose of determining the average weekly wage; and the notice of injury and claim for compensation, as required by Code Sections 34-9-80 through 34-9-82, 34-9-85, and 34-9-86, shall be given and made to such employer.

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O.C.G.A. § 34-9-362. Notice by employer or insurer of claim against fund; request for a hearing

(a)  An employer or insurer shall notify the administrator of the fund of any possible claim against the fund as soon as practicable, but in no event later than 78 calendar weeks following the injury or the payment of an amount equivalent to 78 weeks of income or death benefits, whichever occurs last.

(b)  The claim must be filed in accordance with the requirements of subsection (a) of this Code section prior to the final settlement of the claim.

(c)  Failure to comply with the provisions of subsections (a) and (b) of this Code section will constitute a bar to recovery from the Subsequent Injury Trust Fund.

(d)  For those notices of claim filed with the fund on or before July 1, 2006, the employer or insurer shall have until June 30, 2009, to obtain a reimbursement agreement issued by the fund or the claim for reimbursement shall be deemed automatically denied.

(e)  For those notices of claim filed with the fund after July 1, 2006, the employer or insurer shall have three years from the date the notice was received by the fund to obtain a reimbursement agreement issued by the fund or the claim for reimbursement shall be deemed automatically denied.

(f)  Notwithstanding subsections (d) and (e) of this Code section, if compensability of the underlying workers' compensation claim is at issue before the State Board of Workers' Compensation, then the employer or insurer shall have three years from the date of final adjudication of compensability by the State Board of Workers' Compensation or any appellate court to obtain a reimbursement agreement issued by the fund or the claim for reimbursement shall be deemed automatically denied.

(g)  Upon actual or statutory automatic denial pursuant to subsection (d), (e), or (f) of this Code section, the employer or insurer shall have 20 days from the date of denial to request a hearing with the State Board of Workers' Compensation pursuant to Code Section 34-9-100; otherwise recovery shall be barred.

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