Workers' Compensation

Lawyers in Macon, GA

When someone is injured while they are at work, even if the incident is 100% their fault, they have a right, under the law, to recover economic damages without proving liability or negligence of anyone. This insurance is required of every employer. It is designed to provide prompt, but reduced, payment to an injured worker. The law requires that workplace injuries that are the fault solely of someone connected with the employer (a business owner, co-worker, or manager) be handled through the workers’ compensation system.

Workers’ compensation DOES provide for medical care and disability payments (to compensate for wage losses) for injured workers. It DOES NOT provide damages for pain and suffering. A worker receives benefits until they are rated as permanent and stationary, meaning that they are not getting better and not getting worse.

At that point there is a determination made as to any percentage of permanent disability and a disability rating is given the injured employee. The injured employee is then given an award to compensate them for any limitations in their ability to work in the future, for future medical treatment and job retraining if they are unable to resume their prior occupation because of their injury.

Many times, a workplace injury is the result of the negligence of someone unconnected with the employer. You are still entitled to workers’ compensation because you were injured on the job and a separate civil suit can be brought against that person (but not the employer- that must be handled through the workers’ compensation process) for both economic and non-economic damages. This is called a third-party action.

If there is someone, besides your employer, responsible (liable) for your injuries, and you recover damages from them, your employer’s insurance company may seek reimbursement for the sums expended on your behalf for disability payments and medical care. This is called a lien. The employer’s insurance company must reduce their request for reimbursement to reflect the employer’s fault. They may also get a credit against future payments for medical care requiring you to first expend all of the monies you recovered in the third-party suit, before they pay any additional medical bills. We work with you to maximize your recovery by seeking to reduce any lien that may exist on your case.

It is important that you have your case reviewed by an experienced Macon, Georgia workers’ compensation lawyer to help you through the process.

For your convenience, our office is in Macon, Georgia, but we serve clients throughout the southeastern United States and nationwide. Workers compensation attorney for your case will put your needs above all else. Call (478) 217-2582 to schedule a free case evaluation today.

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