If you’ve been injured on the job, you might be confused about what to do next. You’ve probably been advised by your management team at work regarding what doctors to see and how to file your paperwork. They might have been helpful throughout your process, but if your injury is severe, life-altering, requires surgery or may prevent returning to your current job, seek help from an attorney to navigate the complex events and decisions that lie ahead.
Reasons to Hire a Workers’ Compensation Attorney
You are entitled to seek legal assistance regardless of the circumstances of your injury. Hiring a workers’ comp attorney could impact your case in numerous ways to help you recover the benefits to which you are entitled and that you need following a serious work injury.
The following is a list of areas in which an attorney can be helpful as you file a claim for workers’ compensation.
- Advocacy: A workers’ compensation attorney will advocate for your medical benefits and disability compensation, ensuring the best outcome for your case. If your injury prevents you from returning to your former employment, this could include filing for appropriate vocational services, retraining options and more.
- Case Management: A workers’ compensation attorney will oversee your case from beginning to end and will watch over deadlines and filing dates to make sure you don’t miss an important requirement. By managing your case yourself, you take a chance that you will forget a filing deadline or miss important paperwork.
- Handling Disputes: If there is a dispute with your employer or the workers’ comp insurer, your attorney will prepare your case to appeal a denial or work through other disputes, such as low impairment ratings. Other disputes may involve the types of benefits to which you are entitled and whether your injury was work-related; therefore, whether it’s compensable under workers’ comp.
- Disability Benefits Evaluation: The workers’ comp insurer should provide medical bills for as long as possible to cover injury-related treatment. You also may recover disability benefits if unable to return to work (permanently or temporarily) and if permanently disabled (completely or partially). Your attorney can look over any settlement or benefit offers to make sure they accurately reflect the compensation to which you are entitled.
Unfortunately, although workers’ compensation laws were established to protect you in the case of workplace injuries, sometimes employers and workers’ compensation insurance companies make it difficult to obtain the compensation and restitution you deserve. A complex legal system and overwhelming paperwork complicate the process further, and if you’re suffering from lasting effects of a serious injury, you may not be thinking as clearly as you need to be to protect yourself successfully.
Consult a reputable workers’ compensation attorney to ensure your case is handled properly. The Cordisco & Saile LLC Firm handles workers’ compensation cases for Bristol workers and those in nearby communities. We offer free consultations, so call 215-642-2335 or contact us online to schedule an appointment with a workers’ compensation lawyer.
