Fremarek v. John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance

This appeal involves the humble issue of the adjudication of a statutory workers’ compensation lien. Had appellant’s counsel presented the issue to the trial court with the minimum investigation of the facts and the law, the issue would have been a visitor to the court house but once. Instead, the controversy resulted in the entry of 21 court orders over a 2 1 /2-year period. At its conclusion, the trial court entered judgment for the workers’ compensation carrier for $9,425.75 and denied its Rule 137 petition for fees. (134 111. 2d R. 137.) We affirm the judgment for a lien and reverse the…