Printing - FECA-PT2 - National Association of Letter Carriers

In any other case, where a judgment or settlement is paid to or on behalf of more than one
individual, a determination will be made concerning the appropriate amount to be allocated to the
injured employee, and the FECA beneficiary will be advised of that determination. The FECA
beneficiary may accept the determination or demonstrate good cause for a different allocation.
Whether to accept a specific allocation is at the discretion of OWCP and FEEWC. Recurring
circumstances involving allocations include:
(1) Loss of Consortium. Any proposed deduction (Line 4) from the gross recovery
reported on Line 1 of a SOR by attributing a portion of the settlement or judgment to
damages for loss of consortium by a family member must be approved by OWCP or FEEWC.
A portion of a settlement or judgment may be attributed to a cause of action for loss of
consortium and thus not included in the gross recovery of the FECA beneficiary set forth on
a SOR only under the following conditions:
(a) State law in the relevant state provides a cause of action for loss of
consortium for the family member to whom the recovery is attributed, and
(b) A cause of action for loss of consortium was actually asserted by that family
member, either in the same action or in separate actions, or in negotiation of the
settlement where a settlement was obtained without the actual filing of litigation.In
support of a request for an allocation of a portion of a settlement or judgment to a
spouse or a child or children, the FECA beneficiary must demonstrate that the above
referenced conditions are met by citation to appropriate state case law or statutes
and by submission of a copy of the complaint filed on behalf of the spouse and/or
children, or other relevant evidence.
Upon receipt of such a request, absent unusual circumstances, an allocation of a
joint settlement or judgment to loss of consortium in an amount of 25% or less for
the spouse and 5% or less for each child up to a maximum of 15% for all children
will be approved. In the event a FECA beneficiary seeks to justify an allocation in
excess of these figures, it will be necessary for him or her to establish to the
satisfaction of OWCP or FEEWC, through submission of evidence and legal argument,
that a higher percentage is appropriate. Use of this formula is generally not
appropriate in circumstances where a FECA beneficiary has died prior to settlement
or judgment.
FECA-PT2 Printed: 06/08/2010 567