Opinion ID: 2508301
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The Claimants Failed To Exhaust Their Administrative Remedies

Text: Before a court will hear an appeal from an agency adjudication, a litigant must normally exhaust the administrative remedies that agency makes available. Dept. of Agriculture v. Curry Bean Co. Inc., 139 Idaho 789, 792, 86 P.3d 503, 506 (2004). The relevant Industrial Commission procedures are as follows. When an LSSA is presented to the Commission, it may approve or deny the settlement, based on the best interests of all parties. I.C. § 72-404; J.R.P. XVIII(B). The Commission's Rule XVIII(C) gives a short list of all the documentation an LSSA submission is expected to contain. If the LSSA is approved, that ends the matter. If it is denied, the Commission may request additional information, or the Commission or either party may schedule a hearing limited to the issue of whether the lump sum settlement ... is for the best interest of all parties. J.R.P. XVIII(D). The Commission's internal rules state that [t]here is no appeal from the Commission's decision regarding approval or denial of an LSSA. Id. If the Commission denies the settlement agreement at the hearing, a claimant may leave the LSSA behind and request a final hearing on the merits. See I.C. § 72-712; J.R.P. X. If the Commission again rules against a claimant at the hearing on the merits, it may be appealed directly to this Court. I.C. § 72-724. Here, the Claimants brought the present action into the district court after the LSSA was orally denied by the Commission, but without requesting a hearing on the Commission's refusal, or seeking a Commission hearing on the underlying merits of the claim. As a result, in order to avoid dismissal the Claimants must successfully assert an exception to the exhaustion requirement that applies in this case.