When to Hire a Fresno Workers’ Compensation Lawyer

California’s workers’ compensation law protects workers who sustain injuries on the job. If you were hurt while performing your duties, you have the right to file a workers’ compensation claim. However, receiving a payout may be complicated. Many workers’ comp claims end in denials or partial compensation. In some situations, you may need to file a personal injury lawsuit.

Knowing when to hire a Fresno workers’ compensation lawyer can help you avoid mistakes that accompany these claims and get the money you deserve.

Filing a Workers’ Compensation Claim

The State of California has strict deadlines related to filing workers’ compensation claims. The worker must notify the employer about the injury within 30 days of its occurrence. However, if the basis of the claim is an occupational illness like back pain and tendonitis, the clock may start running when the employee discovers the problem.

In any case, missing the deadline could cause issues to arise with the compensation claim in the future. That is why the employee in Fresno should always consult a workers’ compensation attorney.

Even if the workers’ compensation claim process appears straightforward, many unexpected issues can come up. Without competent legal assistance, you can make mistakes that might be irreversible.

Facing an Employer’s Dispute

An employer may decide to dispute the workers’ compensation claim for many reasons, including:

• Injury is not work-related: Some employers can try to claim the injury occurred outside of work or during an activity unrelated to job duties.
• Pre-existing conditions: Employers may argue that the injury was caused by a prior condition and not something that developed on the job. This defense is common in repetitive stress injuries like carpal tunnel or chronic back pain.
• Lack of medical evidence: If the employee does not seek immediate medical attention or fails to follow up with treatment, the employer may dispute the severity injury.
• Allegations of intoxication: The employer may attempt to deny the claim by asserting that the employee was under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

If not countered correctly, these disputes can lead to a denial. If the employee has not hired a workers’ compensation lawyer in Fresno yet, they have to seek legal assistance to help work out the dispute.

Third-Party Liability

If a third party is responsible for the workers’ injury, the employee may need to file a personal injury claim in addition to a workers’ compensation claim. This can happen, for example, if a worker from another company on the same construction site is liable for the injury (e.g., a crane operator dropping debris).

An employee in Fresno would need to hire a workers’ compensation attorney who can help navigate the case. These cases are more complicated than workers’ comp claims because they involve proving the at-fault party’s negligence. However, unlike workers’ comp claims, they allow the employee to recover full lost wages and non-economic damages.

Understanding When to Hire a Workers’ Compensation Lawyer in Fresno

If you sustained injuries on the job or suffer from an occupational illness, you can recover damages. To do that, you may need to file a workers’ compensation claim, a personal injury lawsuit, or both. Knowing when to hire a Fresno workers’ compensation lawyer can help you take the right steps and avoid mistakes.

At Silberman & Lam, LLP, we recommend scheduling a consultation as soon as the injury on the job occurs. The faster we can start handling the case, the more chances you have of obtaining fair compensation. Call us for an in-depth case evaluation today.