## Facts

- Dixie Slover suffered accidental injuries on November 13, 1994, arising out of and in the course of her employment with Xenia Manufacturing, Inc.
- Slover filed a workers’ compensation claim and an application for adjustment of claim with the Illinois Industrial Commission.
- On July 29, 1996, Slover and Xenia executed a settlement contract requiring Xenia to pay Slover’s outstanding medical bills.
- On October 31, 1996, Slover filed a petition in the circuit court of Jefferson County under section 19(g) of the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act, alleging Xenia had not paid all medical bills required by the settlement.
- With her petition, Slover filed a standardized settlement contract that bore a stamp reading: “APPROVED and CERTIFIED pursuant to 48 IL Rev. Stat. 138.14,” and the stamp contained signatures of the Commission members and the arbitrator.
- The filed settlement contract was not certified by the Commission’s secretary or assistant secretary.
- Xenia moved to dismiss under section 2-619(a)(1) of the Code of Civil Procedure, arguing the circuit court lacked jurisdiction because Slover did not file a “certified copy” as section 19(g) requires.
- The circuit court granted the motion and dismissed the section 19(g) petition for lack of jurisdiction, and Slover appealed.

## Issues

1. Whether a settlement contract bearing an “APPROVED and CERTIFIED” stamp signed by commissioners and the arbitrator, but not certified by the Industrial Commission’s secretary or assistant secretary, is a “certified copy” sufficient to give the circuit court jurisdiction under section 19(g) of the Workers’ Compensation Act.

## Decision

- The appellate court affirmed the circuit court’s dismissal.
- Section 19(g) authorizes a circuit court to enter judgment only when a party presents a “certified copy” of the arbitrator’s award or the Commission’s final decision.
- Reading section 19(g) together with section 16, the court held that a “certified copy” for court use is one certified through the Commission’s secretary or assistant secretary, who has custody of the Commission’s records and is the official source of certified copies.
- The “APPROVED and CERTIFIED” stamp on the settlement contract, referencing the former settlement-approval statute, showed the Commission approved the settlement but did not establish that the document filed in circuit court was a certified copy issued by the secretary or assistant secretary.
- Because Slover did not file the statutorily required certified copy, the circuit court lacked subject-matter jurisdiction to proceed under section 19(g).

## Legal Principles

- A section 19(g) proceeding is a special statutory mechanism; the circuit court’s authority exists only when the statute’s stated conditions are satisfied.
- Section 19(g) requires presentation of a “certified copy” of the arbitrator’s award or the Commission’s final decision before the circuit court may enter judgment.
- Section 16 assigns custody of Commission records to the secretary or assistant secretary and provides that certified copies furnished by that office are treated like originals in court; this identifies the official means of certification for Commission records.
- A stamp used to indicate Commission approval of a settlement does not substitute for certification of a true copy for section 19(g) enforcement when the document lacks certification by the secretary or assistant secretary.
- A dismissal for lack of jurisdiction under section 2-619(a)(1) is reviewed de novo on appeal.

## Conclusion

Slover holds that a party seeking a circuit-court judgment under section 19(g) must file a Commission record certified through the Industrial Commission’s secretary or assistant secretary as contemplated by section 16; a settlement contract merely stamped “APPROVED and CERTIFIED” and signed by commissioners and the arbitrator, without the secretary’s or assistant secretary’s certification, does not satisfy section 19(g) and leaves the circuit court without jurisdiction.


Slover v. Industrial Commission, 702 N.E.2d 664 (1998)