NUMBER 13-13-00219-CV
COURT OF APPEALS
THIRTEENTH DISTRICT OF TEXAS
CORPUS CHRISTI – EDINBURG
LUMBERMENS MUTUAL
CASUALTY COMPANY, Appellant,
v.
NOE PORTILLO, Appellee.
On appeal from the 398th District Court
of Hidalgo County, Texas.
ABATEMENT ORDER
Before Justices Garza, Benavides, and Perkes
Order Per Curiam
On June 5, 2014, this Court issued a memorandum opinion in this cause. On June
11, 2014, appellant, Lumbermens Mutual Casualty Company (“Lumbermens”), filed a
Motion for Approval of Application for Attorney’s Fees with an attached affidavit by
Lumbermens’s counsel and billing records. In its motion, counsel for Lumbermens asks
this court to grant an order which finds that counsel’s attorney’s fees incurred related to
this appeal are reasonable and necessary. See TEX. LAB. CODE ANN. § 408.222 (West,
Westlaw through 2013 3d C.S.) (mandating that the amount of attorney’s fees for
defending an insurance carrier in a workers’ compensation action must be approved by
either the Texas Department of Insurance’s Workers’ Compensation Division (“the
Division”) or “court,” and determined by either the Division or court to be reasonable and
necessary). On June 27, 2014, appellee, Noe Portillo, filed a response with the Court
stating that he was unopposed to Lumbermens’s motion.
We agree with Lumbermens’s position that the labor code allows for the recovery
of attorney’s fees in connection with defending an insurance career in a workers’
compensation claim, after (1) the fee is approved by the Division or “court” and (2) a
determination of whether the fee is reasonable and necessary is made. See id. Although
the statute does not specify which “court” may make such a finding under section 408.222,
we do not believe that this Court is the “court” to make such a determination because
such a determination requires the evaluation and weighing of evidence. See Old Republic
Ins. Co. v. Warren, 33 S.W.3d 428, 434–35 (Tex. App.—Fort Worth, pet. denied)
(declining to determine the propriety and the reasonableness of the fees with no motion
for attorney’s fees having previously been filed at the trial court). Instead, we conclude
that the approval and determination of the propriety and reasonableness of
Lumbermens’s counsel’s attorney’s fees is more appropriate for the trial court, which will
sit as the factfinder to evaluate and weigh the evidence, and ultimately answer the
pending dispositive questions of fact. See id.
Given the foregoing, we ABATE this matter and REMAND it to the trial court for
the limited purpose of holding a hearing to make a determination of whether
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Lumbermens’s counsel’s attorney’s fees incurred on and between April 17, 2013 and
June 9, 2014 (1) should be approved; and (2) that such fees are reasonable and
necessary using the guidelines set forth in the labor code. See TEX. LAB. CODE ANN. §
408.222. The trial court shall make and file appropriate findings of fact and conclusions
of law and cause them to be included in a clerk's record; cause the hearing to be
transcribed and included in a reporter's record; and have these records forwarded to the
Clerk of this Court within twenty days from the date of this order. If the trial court requires
additional time to comply, the trial court should so notify the Clerk of this Court.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
PER CURIAM
Delivered and filed the
3rd day of July, 2014.
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