Virginia: Claimant Bound by Terms of Settlement Agreement and Full Release

Where a claimant filed multiple claims, was represented by an attorney, and later entered into a settlement agreement that provided, inter alia, (a) that the employer would not be responsible for medical costs associated with a claimed right shoulder injury, and (b) the agreement disposed of all issues related to claimant’s September 22, 2016 injury, the claimant could not later seek additional benefits for her right shoulder. The court stressed that claimant understood the terms of the settlement, and there was no evidence of fraud, misrepresentation, mutual mistake, or imposition. She could not keep the benefits of her agreement and at the same time not be bound by her release.

Thomas A. Robinson, J.D., the Feature National Columnist for the LexisNexis Workers’ Compensation eNewsletter, is co-author of Larson’s Workers’ Compensation Law (LexisNexis).

LexisNexis Online Subscribers: Citations below link to Lexis Advance.

See Giles v. Prince George Cty. Pub. Sch., 2019 Va. App. LEXIS 3 (Jan. 8, 2019)

See generally Larson’s Workers’ Compensation Law, § 131.04.

Source: Larson’s Workers’ Compensation Law, the nation’s leading authority on workers’ compensation law