Work Injuries

When injuries occur on the job, the financial and practical consequences of that reality can be overwhelming. When a worker’s livelihood is compromised due to an injury or occupational illness, it can affect that worker’s job, financial stability, and family life. As a result, it is critically important for workers who have been injured on the job to pursue any and all legal options available to them. Securing any compensation to which they may be entitled can help to ensure that the process of recovery from work-related harm is as stress-free and burden-free as is possible under the circumstances.

If you have been hurt while on the job, chances are very good that you are entitled to at least one kind of compensation at this time. When you arrive for your free consultation, our experienced legal team will ask you questions about your job, the circumstances that led to your injuries, and whether you have any questions about your legal situation. We will then answer all of your questions one by one and provide you with personalized legal guidance so that you can make informed decisions concerning how you want to proceed. Our consultations are confidential, free, and are offered to all injured workers with no strings attached. We believe that there is little value in workers’ rights being codified by law if workers don’t understand what those rights are and how to exercise them. As a result, our free, risk-free consultation process is extended to all injured workers interested in learning about their rights and options.

How Fault Factors into Benefits Eligibility Concerns

The California workers’ compensation system is not fault-based. This means that if you’re eligible for coverage and you sustain injury or occupational illness while on the job, you’ll remain entitled to receive benefits even if the circumstances that led to your harm were partially or totally your fault.

There are some narrow exceptions to this rule. For example, if you were intoxicated or impaired by illicit substances at the time that you became injured, your eligibility for benefits will be revoked as that eligibility relates to this particular injury scenario. Additionally, if you start a fight, initiate a road rage accident, or otherwise cause an altercation that leads to your injury, you won’t be able to claim benefits for the harm you’ve suffered. Finally, if you attempt to commit workers’ compensation insurance fraud by purposely trying to get hurt, you will not only be rendered ineligible for benefits related to the harm you’ve suffered, you may face criminal penalties as well.

Legal Options for Repetitive Stress, Occupational Illness, and Preexisting Condition Aggravation Victims

Workers’ compensation benefits aren’t just made available to workers who have been harmed as a result of occupational accidents. They are also made available to those who have suffered harm as a result of occupational illness, repetitive stress and repetitive trauma injuries, and those whose work-related activities have aggravated preexisting medical conditions.

It’s important to understand, however, that it can be more difficult to secure a fair workers’ compensation benefits settlement for these kinds of harm than it usually is when pursuing benefits for accident-related harm. Why? When a piece of machinery falls on a worker who is engaged in operations at a company’s primary worksite and is injured in front of witnesses, there is really no way that a workers’ compensation claims adjuster can insist that the harm that worker suffered wasn’t job-related. However, workers who suffer harm as a result of toxic exposure over time, conditions that result in illness, repetitive trauma, and/or aggravation of preexisting conditions may have other influences in their lives that could – conceivably – contribute to the harm they’re experiencing. This makes these claims (generally) more difficult to prove and tougher to resolve quickly and fairly.

Say that you’re filing a workers’ comp claim for a repetitive stress injury affecting your shoulder. You’re a roofer and the constant pressure placed on your dominant shoulder is making it impossible to remain in your current position. You also lift weights regularly, you play recreational softball, and you have young kids. An insurance claims adjuster could insist that these other influences are the true cause of your shoulder injury. The reality that your workers’ compensation claim could be denied, devalued, and/or delayed due to concerns about your non-work life activities is frustrating, to say the least. Thankfully, our experienced legal team knows how to approach these particular filing challenges efficiently and effectively. It’s almost always a good idea to work with an experienced attorney instead of trying to file a workers’ comp claim yourself. But if you’re filing a claim for harm that isn’t accident-related, it is especially important to work with a professional when filing your claim due to the inherent risks and complexities involved.