Printing - FECA-PT2 - National Association of Letter Carriers

When a third party is or may be legally liable for a FECA-covered injury and any damages are recovered
from the liable third party or the third party's insurance company, the OWCP has a right to a refund of a
portion of any recovery. This is true even if the damages recovered from the third party are not similar or
identical to the benefits paid by the OWCP, such as where OWCP has paid for medical treatment and lost
time and the recovery from the third party or the third party's insurance carrier is for pain and suffering
only. See Lorenzetti v. United States, 467 U.S. 167 (1984).
02-1100-2 Authority
2. Authority.
a. Section 8131 of the FECA (5 U.S.C. § 8131) provides that, to the extent that an injury or
death for which compensation is payable under this subchapter is caused under circumstances
creating a legal liability on a person or persons other than the United States (a “third party”) to
pay damages, OWCP may require the FECA beneficiary to assign a right of action to enforce that
liability to the United States, or to prosecute the action in his or her own name.
b. Section 8132 of the FECA (5 U.S.C. § 8132) sets forth the formula for computing the
refund due to the United States after a FECA beneficiary receives money or other property from a
third party in satisfaction of the third party’s liability to the beneficiary.
c. 20 C.F.R. §§ 10.705-10.719, as revised effective January 4, 1999, contain further guidance
concerning cases involving liability of a third party
02-1100-3 Responsibilities of OWCP and SOL
3. Responsibilities of OWCP and SOL. All offices (owning DO’s, FEEWC, USPS) are responsible for
ensuring that attorneys and claimants are actively pursuing recoveries from third parties, filing any
required Statement of Recovery, and paying the required refund.
a. OWCP.
(1) The Regional Director. With the exception of certain USPS cases (see paragraph
2-1100.12 below), Regional Directors (RDs) are responsible for dentifying and processing
third party cases under 5 U.S.C. §§ 8131 and 8132. This responsibility has been
delegated, through the District Director and Assistant District Director, to a limited number
of claims examiners, or in certain instances, to fiscal officers or workers’ compensation
assistants. These persons are known as designated claims examiners.
(2) Each Claims Examiner (CE) is responsible for identifying any potential third party
liability during the primary examination of a case in accordance with guidelines contained in
FECA PM 2-1100.6, below.
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