Tri-Met, Inc. v. Wolfe

I disagree with the majority’s conclusion that an award of attorney fees under ORS 656.382(1) was proper. In my view, on the record before us, employer’s delay in acceptance of the claim was not “unreasonable resistance to compensation” within the meaning of that statute. The undisputed evidence in this case is that any delay in the payment of compensation was a function of a processing error and had nothing to do with the timing of the acceptance.

The facts are straightforward and uncontested. Claimant filed a claim for an injured arm. Employer did not accept or deny the claim within 90 days…