Holdsworth v. Greenwood Famers Co-op, 286 Neb. 49

Bruce Holdsworth filed a workers’ compensation petition for a 2004 injury at Greenwood Farmers Cooperative.
The parties used the 2009 settlement provision §§ 48-139(3) to file a release waiving all workers’ compensation rights without court approval.
Holdsworth signed and his attorney signed the release, filed January 11, 2012, and the case was dismissed with prejudice January 12, 2012.
The employer paid the lump-sum settlement on February 21, 2012 (postmarked February 22, 2012), 42 days after filing the release.
Holdsworth then sought a waiting-time penalty and attorney fees under § 48-125(A)(Cum. Supp. 2012).
The Workers’ Compensation Court awarded penalties, which the employer appealed; the Supreme Court granted bypass to address § 48-139(3) issues.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the WC Court had jurisdiction after the § 48-139(3) release	Holdsworth’s release waived rights but did not strip jurisdiction	Waiver discharged the court’s authority to adjudicate penalties	WC Court had continuing jurisdiction; waiver did not destroy jurisdiction
Whether § 48-125 penalties apply to § 48-139(3) settlements	Penalties should apply if delay occurred	Waiver in § 48-139(3) excludes penalties	Penalties are waived by the § 48-139(3) release; § 48-125 does not apply
Whether the dismissal order was a final order under § 48-125	Dismissal in a special proceeding can be final	Dismissal is a non-final housekeeping matter	Dismissal was not the type of final order that triggers § 48-125 penalties post-release
Whether there was a reasonable controversy precluding penalties	There was a legal question over penalties under § 48-125	No reasonable controversy; delay due to nonpayment after settlement	No reasonable controversy; penalties appropriate only if not waived; here waived by § 48-139(3)

Hollandsworth v. Nebraska Partners, 260 Neb. 756 (2000) (holding that court-approved lump-sum settlements are subject to waiting-period penalties)
McBee v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., 255 Neb. 903 (1999) (penalties under § 48-125 require no reasonable controversy)
Russell v. Kerry, Inc., 278 Neb. 981 (2009) (supports interpreting waivers and jurisdictional reach in WC Act)
Soto v. State, 269 Neb. 337 (2005) (concerns interpretation to avoid absurd results; timely payment policy)
O’Gilvie v. United States, 519 U.S. 79 (1996) (defines ‘on account of’ as meaning ‘because of’ (damages context))
Bamford v. Bamford, Inc., 279 Neb. 259 (2010) (context on waivers and timing in settlements)