What is the first step to filing a workers compensation claim?

Tell your employer that you have sustained an injury, request a DWC-1 Claim Form and call an attorney to make sure you are protected in accordance with the workers compensation system.  It is important to have a law firm at your side from the beginning. A workers compensation law firm does not charge an individual who has sustained an injury at work by the hour; so, there is no reason to hesitate in contacting a law firm to make sure your workers compensation rights are protected immediately. The Law Office of Scott A. Schwartz is located in Los Angeles but represents clients with workers compensation injuries both within Los Angeles and outside of Los Angeles.  Our law firm welcomes you to call us for a free consultation regarding your prospective workers compensation claim regardless of whether you live in Los Angeles or outside of Los Angeles.  If we decide for some reason that your workers compensation claim would best be handled by a local attorney, attorney Scott A. Schwartz will happily refer you to a law firm outside the greater Los Angeles area. However, it is worth noting that our law firm has had great success with workers compensation claims both within Los Angeles and outside of Los Angeles.  

Attorney Scott A. Schwartz confers with his workers compensation clients as soon as possible after an injury to discuss their workers compensation claim and upon accepting said claim, files an application for adjudication with the Workers Compensation Appeals Board on their behalf.  As a cutting edge Los Angeles law firm, attorney Scott A. Schwartz has invested in technology that enables our law firm to file your Application for Adjudication with the appropriate Workers Compensation Appeals Board (e.g., Los Angeles, Van Nuys, Goleta, San Luis Obispo) through a cryptic digital file that protects your identity. Not only does the foregoing method expedite the amount of time it takes for attorney Scott A. Schwartz to have a workers compensation file number assigned to your claim, but workers compensation clients of our law firm are at less risk of having their personal information (e.g., social security number) compromised.  Attorney Scott A. Schwartz takes every measure he can to protect his workers compensation clients from the onset of the workers compensation claim to its disposition.  It may be the case that another law firm would have your workers compensation application dropped in a basket at a Workers Compensation Appeals Board and it generally takes longer to receive a workers compensation case number.  

It is against the law to fire an employee for filing a workers comp claim. Attorney Scott A. Schwartz has great experience representing workers compensation clients who are fired after filing a workers comp claim. Other times, attorney Scott A. Schwartz associates a law firm to bring a lawsuit against the employer outside of the workers comp system. However, it is the experience of our law firm that employers know it is illegal to fire an employee because of his or her intentions to file a workers compensation claim.  Though, there are some employers that do not know that it is illegal to fire the employee because they filed a workers comp claim.  If you are fired for filing a workers compensation claim, and the employee has a lawyer, sometimes all it takes is a letter from the law firm representing you in your workers comp claim to the employer's attorney, which advises the attorney or employer's law firm that their client has engaged in unlawful conduct and thereafter, our workers compensation client is reinstated at his or her job.  Other times, as mentioned above, attorney Scott A. Schwartz will bring an additional action before the Workers Compensation Appeals Board, requesting reinstatement at your job and an increase in your settlement by one half. With that said, employers will often try to defend their termination of you by arguing a business necessity defense.  Attorney Scott A. Schwartz has successfully fought against the business necessity defense against both the law firm handling the workers compensation claim and even special counsel, appearing as the law firm for the sole purpose of defending the claim regarding the unlawful termination.  

As discussed above, if your employer fires you for filing a workers compensation claim, attorney Scott A. Schwartz will file a petition with the workers' compensation court, demanding penalties, fines and reinstatement. Said petition will often request that the employee be paid the wages he or she would have been paid had the wrongful termination not have occured.  Such a petition must be filed within one year of the date the employee was illegally terminated. There are also other remedies including, but not limited to, the filing of a civil suit for wrongful termination and violation of various California codes including, the Fair Employment and Housing Act. These civil suits are not automatic; they must be requested from the attorney or law firm in a separate contract and a complaint must be first filed by the employee with the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing. If the Department accepts the case, they will prosecute it on behalf of the employee at no charge to the employee.  However, if the Department rejects the complaint, the employee still can sue on his or her own in civil court (or, hire a law firm to do so) within one year of the date of rejection of the case by the Department.   

Attorney Scott Schwartz regularly works with doctors who specialize in Workers Compensation law and will do his very best to find an appropriate physician in your area. Even if the insurance rejects your claim, attorney Scott A. Schwartz regularly works with doctors who treat his clients on a lien basis.  Unlike personal injury, any physician procured by attorney Scott A. Schwartz on a lien basis for a workers compensation claim will not file a lien against your settlement; rather, the lien is filed against the workers compensation insurance company and resolved at sometime after the ultimate disposition of your workers compensation claim.  Also, keep track of the mileage you travel to visit doctors on and attorney Scott A. Schwartz will petition to have your expenses reimbursed.  The rate at which you are reimbursed is set the the IRS and you can obtain the rate by calling our law firm or visiting our Los Angeles office for a free workers compensation consultation.

For injuries that occur in 2012, the maximum temporary disability rate will increase from $986.69 per week to $1,010.50 per week.  Minimum temporary disability rates will increase from $148 per week to $157.57 per week.  Of course, certain individuals will be in between, and workers compensation law provides that such injured workers are eligible to receive two thirds of his or her weekly earnings up to the maximum and not below the minimum amounts set forth above. There are certain instances where the foregoing information will vary and our law firm will happily discuss this with you by phone or at our Los Angeles office. 

By law, your employer, or your employer's insurance company must pay for all necessary medical bills related to injury caused by your workers compensation injury. The employee never has to pay for medical bills out of his or her pocket for an injury that is deemed a workers compensation injury.  If an employee sustained a workers compensation injury and does pay medical bills out of pocket, he or she is entitled to reimbursement without regard to deductibles or co-payments. It is important to keep any receipts for such payments and send them to our Los Angeles office location. 

Your temporary disability payments will either come from your employer's workers compensation insurance carrier or the State of California; provided; however, that your employer has withheld money from your paycheck for state disability (which they are required to do if you are a W-2 employee). In the event that your claim is denied, attorney Scott A. Schwartz and your physician will assist you in completing and submitting a Disability Insurance Claim Form to EDD so that you can receive your state disability insofar as you are deemed temporarily totally disabled.  Temporary disability under workers compensation only lasts for certain periods of time and the amounts may vary depending on certain factors.  For greater detail on the foregoing, please feel free to call attorney Scott A. Schwartz or visit his Los Angeles law firm and meet with attorney Scott A. Schwartz in person.

The employee will not have to pay any upfront costs or fees. All fees are paid at the end, including attorney fees. The Law Office of Scott A. Schwartz requests 15% of what the employee wins in court. The Law Office of Scott A. Schwartz works on an arrangement of no recovery, no fee.

Your workers compensation case is confidential; future employers do not have a right to obtain this information, nor ask you if you've ever suffered a disabling injury at a job. 

The value of your case depends on how much permanent disability the doctor says you have, when he or she discharges you. Other factors that decide the value of your case is how much future medical expenses the doctor says you might encounter to treat you work related disability. Permanent disability in workers' compensation, could be partial or total.  This means that the value of your case will be much higher if you are found to be suffering from a total disability as opposed to a partial disability. Still, a partial disability could be worth over $100,000. 

You know you have a workers' comp case if you get injured at work or away from work while doing something for your employer.  There are a lot of exceptions to this rule, but it would take a careful analysis of your case and the facts regarding the injury.  We offer a free consultation to determine whether you have a viable workers' compensation claim.