Workers Compensation Helps Pay for Work Injury

Workers’ Compensation helps pay but does not fully Compensate

The title of this blog speaks to the fact that workers’ compensation helps pay for but does not fully compensate for work injury. In other words, it does not necessarily make a person whole. When a person is said to be made whole, the justice system has in theory at least placed the injured party in an equivalent position had the injury not occurred. This is not the goal of workers’ compensation at all. California workers compensation injury law helps pay for work injury, but it is not intended to fully compensate the employee for their injury. This is an extremely important concept for injured employees to understand right from the beginning of their claim. To understand that their claim is an insurance claim seeking benefits under an insurance policy is important. It is important because injured employees seeking benefits need to know what to realistically expect out of their case rather than having expectations built on hopes and dreams of a windfall. Unlike negligence torts (common law wrongs committed by others when outside of the workplace setting), the concept of California workers comp. is not to right a wrong. Instead, it is to help pay for work injury by providing wage replacement, medical care, and a host of other small benefits to help the hurt employee. Once this concept is understood, the reality of what can be had from one of these claims is revealed to the applicant. To understand early is to have the ability to plan for the future based on expectations rooted in reality.

How California Work Injury Law Is Administered

Now that the reader understands that we are dealing with an insurance claim and not a tort lawsuit seeking damages and/or other legal remedies, we can explore what it potentially provides or pays for, starting with how it is set up. The California Labor Code is the body of law that sets out the required benefits to be provided and the criteria for obtaining them. The portion of the Labor Code is also known or referred to as the workers’ compensation law. In addition to being defined by the Code, the Code defines how the policies are to be administered (or delivered) to those who apply for them. Moreover, the law provides for a separate administrative law court system known as the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board (or WCAB for short) to resolve disputes on claims that are alleged. When disputes do arise, an application should be filed at the WCAB where a judge will be assigned to the claim. From there on out, an Administrative Law Judge (or ALJ) will provide general oversight of the case to resolve disputes that the parties are unable to resolve on their own.

What California Workers Compensation Claim Potentially Provides

The California work injury law courts help make sure the injured worker is provided for properly. This means that they oversee that the applicant receives the appropriate procedural and substantive rights. Generally, applicants will hire an injury lawyer to help them assert their rights and go to court if necessary to resolve disputes. Those firms that specialize in workers’ compensation should be consulted immediately if any dispute is foreseen. This is because rights can be lost if not exercised in a timely manner. The claims process is also a sort of game/dance where having a lawyer early on can place you one step ahead. Some rights you would try to obtain includes but are not limited to: 1) Permanent Disability (or PD); Temporary Disability (or TD); Job Displacement Voucher (or JDV); Mileage Reimbursement; Medical Treatment to Cure or Relieve; Future Medical Care (or FMC). The amount, timing and frequency of such benefits can be heavily manipulated by the use of a lawyer. The insurance company is already attempting to manipulate the situation before the work injury even occurs. This creates a highly litigious system where lawyers become heavily involved in a significant number of claims.

Hiring A Lawyer To Protect Your Rights

It is clear that California has a highly litigious comp. system. This is something many just entering the system do not understand. Those who do not head warnings or do not receive any often find themselves up the river without a paddle. Fortunately, many adverse events can be undone through the use of the claims appeals process at the WCAB. If you have been hurt on the job and are looking for answers to your situation, call our law firm to speak directly to a California Injury Lawyer about your case. All calls should be directed to 844-584-8444 , no obligation legal consultation and case evaluation. If we feel that our representation could affect your claim for the better, we will offer your our services on a contingency fee basis of 15% of any amounts of money recovered. No recover will mean you pay no fees to us and no costs for any of the legal proceedings. To learn more about our firm philosophy or to obtain more general knowledge about the law, visit our website at calinjurylawyer.com to start exploring the different important topics we write about that could affect your situation as well.