Workers' compensation lawyers can help if you are involved in a workers comp claim and are having trouble working through the process. Workers' compensation insurance is managed by an insurance company by people familiar with the process, so having some help from someone who knows the system can be critical.
Hiring An Attorney
When you feel you need a workers' compensation attorney to help you through your claim, you need to find one that is experienced with working with clients and understands the process of filing and winning workers comp claims. Talk to the attorney about their experience with workers' comp and other cases they have been involved in during the consultation.
The lawyer you are working with is going to handle all the legal filings for your case and try to convince the insurance company to approve the claim. Your lawyer will often specialize in these kinds of cases and have a team that can help with all the legal filings and preparing the claim for you.
When hiring a lawyer, the goal is to get the insurance company to settle the claim with you, but your lawyer should have trial experience so that if they need to take the case to court, they can mount a good case and get the resolution you need.
Settling Your Claim
Your workers' compensation lawyer will most likely recommend that you try and settle your case out of court if possible. A settlement can happen faster if you agree to settle, and there is often more flexibility in how the case is handled, allowing the attorneys from both sides to work out a deal that will result in a fair settlement for you.
The lawyers will meet and discuss the case multiple times, so you will need to have a workers' comp lawyer that will communicate with you throughout the process. It is vital that you are involved in the process and have some say in the decisions being made, so look for a lawyer that is not afraid to make recommendations and allow you to make the final decisions based on their guidance.
The entire case may take many months or even a year or more to settle, so it critical that you are patient with your attorney and allow them the time they need to make sure all the legal aspects of the claim are appropriately handled. Cutting corners during the process may not speed up the claim and could result in problems coming up later that actually slow down the settlement process.
