Maison Law of Santa Monica stands ready to help anyone hurt while on the job. We can help injured employees earn the most possible through Workers’ Compensation. Not every victim is treated fairly, and not everyone receives the same amount of Worker’s Comp compensation. We want to make sure every victim has the money to pay every medical bill and support their families.
Contact us today for a free consultation to learn more about your options that may go beyond standard workers’ comp benefits.
Do I Need a Lawyer After Suffering an Injury On The Job in Santa Monica?
If you receive a serious injury at work and miss more than a few days on the job, you may require the help of a lawyer to get fair treatment through workers’ compensation. A workplace injury like a broken bone, a back injury, or brain trauma will result in more lost time at work and higher medical bills. This might cause employers to look for ways to avoid taking responsibility.
A skilled Santa Monica Workers’ Compensation Lawyer secures the evidence needed to hold employers accountable and to ensure you receive the maximum Workers’ Compensation Support available. Talk to a lawyer if you feel you aren’t being treated fairly by your employer after an injury. Go over your options if you believe Workers’ Compensation won’t provide enough in compensation to pay all of your hospital expenses and your living expenses while you can’t work.
The guidebook provided by The California Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) explains a few other reasons you may want to trust your case to a lawyer.
The Types of Workers’ Comp Cases We Help Santa Monica Workers Win
Santa Monica employees in all career paths and industries work hard and they deserve to do that work in safe environments. Unfortunately, employers and corporations can put profits over safety and then abandon workers when they get hurt and can’t return to their duties.
Employers can delay in helping you file for support. They may even try to prevent you from filing. Sometimes the proper level of support is withheld because the full extent of the victim’s injury hardships aren’t properly communicated to Workers’ Compensation administrators.
Maison Law attorneys take aggressive action when these obstacles arise for injured workers. These are just some of the local occupations and risks that we can help injured employees earn maximum compensation for:
- Workers’ Comp Cases involving employees in the hotel, resort, and tourism industries
- Retail worker injuries
- Business property dangers, fall hazards inside offices and outside in parking lots
- Workers’ Comp cases involving injured construction workers
- Workers’ Comp cases involving farm laborers and orchard workers
- Manufacturing plant and packing plant injured workers
- Support for injured city, county, or state government employees
- Injuries caused by collapsing shelves and overhead hazards
- Injuries involving work vehicles like trucks, forklifts, and order pickers
- Machinery dangers
- Tool dangers
- Burns and electrical shock
- Exposure to hazardous substances
- Ventilation issues
- Unmaintained stairwells
- Slip-and-falls on puddles or trip-and-falls on debris left in workplace
- Falls from great heights
- Exposure to elements
- Back and neck strain
- Repetitive motion injuries
Visit our website to find Workers’ Comp information for employees in specific industries.
How Can a Lawyer Improve the Outcome of My Workers’ Compensation Case?
A skilled lawyer protects you from false allegations that delay and reduce support. Your lawyer would also work to get you much more compensation than you might be able to secure on your own.
These are just a few other safeguards and benefits your attorney would provide:
- Fully investigate your accident and your employer’s safety record
- Handle the complex paperwork and filing of a Workers’ Compensation claim
- Meet every deadline
- Represent you before Workers’ Compensation administrators and judges to make sure the facts don’t get covered up
- Work with your doctors and other medical experts to show the extent and consequences of your injuries
- Demands lifelong support if you’ve received a permanent disability
- Helps you file a lawsuit against your employer if the employer’s reckless actions led to your accident
- Protects you from retaliation and takes action if you are fired unjustly after getting injured
Winning Compensation for Injured Workplace Accident Victims
Your attorney makes sure Workers’ Comp administrators are aware of every hardship you’ve endured since your accident. Your lawyer provides them with accurate estimates on the care you may need in the years ahead.
It’s critical to include every damage caused by a painful injury in your claim. Anything left off becomes a cost that families may have to pay themselves.
The DIR Injured Worker’s Handbook goes over all the different types of support available through a claim. This is a look at some of the support victims and their families could receive:
- Medical Care. Paid for by your employer, to help you recover from an injury or illness caused by work. This includes doctor visits and other treatment services, tests, medicines, equipment, and travel costs reasonably necessary to treat your injury.
- Temporary Disability Benefits. Payments if you lose wages because your injury prevents you from doing your usual job while recovering.
- Permanent Disability Benefits. Payments if you don’t recover completely and your injury causes a permanent loss of physical or mental function that a doctor can measure.
- Supplemental Job Displacement Benefit. A voucher to help pay for retraining or skill enhancement if you are eligible to receive permanent disability benefits, your employer doesn’t offer you work, and you don’t return to work for your employer.
- Death Benefits. The families of victims are eligible for Workers’ Compensation support if a loved one is killed in a workplace accident or passes away due to an illness contracted on the job.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a lawyer for California Workers’ Compensation if I’m a union member?
Yes, in some cases. Union workers still draw from Workers’ Compensation when injured, but they also receive additional benefits through union membership. A lawyer might still make a difference in how much victims receive from Workers’ Comp and will be checking to make sure employers provide all benefits and protections that must be extended to union members.
Do I need a lawyer for California Workers’ Compensation if I’m not a U.S. citizen?
Yes, in some cases. Workers are eligible for support under California Workers’ Compensation system regardless of their immigration status or undocumented worker status. Maison Law can help many victims secure more in support for their families.
When should I report my injury at work?
Immediately. Alert your supervisor as soon as you are injured. If you wait longer than 30 days to inform your employer of an injury, you may lose your chance to file a claim. You can find more information on how to proceed on the California Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) website.
How long can I wait to file a California Workers’ Compensation injury claim?
As seen above, injured workers should report their injuries to their employers as soon as possible. Then they usually have up to one year from the date of the accident to file a claim with California’s Division of Workers’ Compensation. In some cases, the one-year deadline counts down from the day the worker learns of an injury or illness. The deadline could be extended if the victim is under the age of 18.
What if I can’t afford to pay a Santa Monica workers’ compensation lawyer?
You can always afford the help of a skilled Maison Law attorney to help you file the strongest claim possible. We work on a contingency fee basis. It means we cover all upfront costs and you owe us nothing unless we win your case for you. Then our fee comes out of the workers’ compensation check you receive.
Contact a Santa Monica Workers’ Compensation Lawyer
The most important outcome is that you earn the most support possible through Workers’ Compensation and a Santa Monica Worker’s Compensation Attorney provides the best chance to do that. Workers who are injured and who lose their ability to support their families must get every benefit possible now and in the future. Maison Law can help untangle the options and get injured workers on track to rebuild their lives and their careers.
There’s an easy way to find out which path offers you the fastest route to the support you and your family desperately need. Speak to Maison Law in a free, no-obligation consultation. We want to hear about what happened to you and then help you determine the best course of action for your family.
