Insurance companies are like bookies. Whether you win or lose, they always win. Or at least that is the plan. One of their dirtiest plays in Longshore cases is manufacturing an attorney fee dispute after the work is already done — not because they have a legal argument, but because they are betting the lawyer will get tired of fighting over a principle and walk away. They tried that play on me. It did not work.

Jay Foster Ocean Springs Attorney Longshore Fee Dispute Victory BRB Decision

What Actually Happened

I was the first lawyer on this Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act case. I handled the initial claim. I managed the evidence gathering. I represented the claimant at the informal conferences with the Department of Labor. I secured favorable recommendations from the district director — the crucial first step in any successful LHWCA claim. I built the foundation the case was won on. Then the claimant decided to hire someone else. That happens. What followed was the insurance company’s attempt to pretend the foundation never existed.

The Setup: A Case Built on My Work

The formal recommendations I secured through the informal conference process became the undisputed backbone of the final settlement. The new lawyer walked into a case that was already structured for success. The arguments were framed, the government had signaled its agreement with the position I developed, and the case was 95% done before the second lawyer touched the file. The insurance side did not like paying for work they could not erase. Their solution was to pretend the work had not happened.

The Gambit: Classic “He Didn’t Do Anything”

When I filed my fee petition, the insurance company’s lawyer filed a series of objections. I did not contribute to the settlement. My fee was unjustified. The district director who awarded the fee was wrong. None of it was a legal argument. It was a gambit designed to discourage lawyers from taking hard Longshore cases by making the fee recovery painful enough that the math stops working. The insurance industry runs this play specifically because it works on firms that are not willing to fight a federal appeal over a principle.

The Result: The Federal Benefits Review Board

My fee award was appealed to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Benefits Review Board, the federal appellate body for Longshore cases. The BRB reviewed the entire record — the record I built — and affirmed my fee award without hesitation. Their language was precise and final: “Employer has not established that the fee award is contrary to law or that the district director abused his discretion in this matter.” In plain language: the insurance company’s argument had no merit and the Board was not interested in it.

The full unedited decision from the Benefits Review Board is public record. You can read it here: BRB Decision — Jay Foster Longshore Attorney Fee Award.

Why This Matters to You

A federal appellate decision confirming the quality of foundational case work is not a credential you manufacture. It is a documented result that exists in the permanent federal record. It shows something specific about how I build cases: the work is done correctly from the beginning, it holds up under the highest level of scrutiny available, and when someone tries to rewrite the story after the fact, the record does not cooperate.

That matters in a Longshore case because the insurance companies handling LHWCA claims are sophisticated defendants with experienced defense counsel. They have seen every version of the case management shortcuts that volume-driven firms take. They know which records have gaps. They know which lawyers built their cases for trial and which ones built them for settlement. The difference between those two approaches shows up in the BRB record and it shows up in what the claimant walks away with.

The TV Lawyer Problem in Longshore Cases

The lawyers advertising on Gulf Coast television do not handle Longshore cases. The LHWCA is a federal statute with its own administrative process, its own court system, and its own fee structure. It requires a lawyer who understands the Department of Labor informal conference process, who knows how to develop the medical and vocational record under the Act, and who is willing to take a fee dispute to the Benefits Review Board if that is what the insurance company forces. That is not a secretary’s job and it is not a settlement mill’s business model.

I have been handling Longshore cases and practicing before the Mississippi Bar for decades. The BRB decision in this case is public. My record is not a slogan on a billboard.

Read the Free Book Before You Hire Anyone

If you are dealing with a Longshore injury and the insurance company is already running their playbook against you, read the free book before you call anyone — including me. The book covers the five mistakes that wreck Mississippi Longshore cases. It exposes the tactics the insurance company is using right now while you are reading this. Get it, read it, and then decide who you want handling what happens next.

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A Record They Cannot Spin

The insurance company in this case tried to rewrite history. They filed objections designed to wear me down. They appealed to a federal board hoping the cost and inconvenience of the fight would make going away look like the rational choice. It was not a close call for me. The work was done correctly. The record showed it. The BRB confirmed it. That is how I approach every case from the first conference to the final check.

I do not take every Longshore case that calls. The LHWCA has specific coverage requirements, and not every maritime worker qualifies. What I will tell you is that when I take a Longshore case, the insurance company on the other side is dealing with a lawyer who has already proven in federal court that the work holds up. If that is the standard you want applied to your case, read the book and call 228-872-6000.

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Fill Out The Form Below And I Will Send It Immediately

P.S. The insurance company that tried to deny this fee award had the full resources of a national carrier behind them. They went to the Benefits Review Board. They lost. The decision is public and it is permanent. 228-872-6000.

P.P.S. A TV lawyer filed a Bar complaint trying to shut down my Foster Fair Fee Guarantee. The Bar dismissed it. I thought book banning went out of style with the Nazis. The Guarantee is in every contract — you walk away with more money than I do, every case, no exceptions. 228-872-6000.

Jay Foster vs. The Insurance Company