FAQs

There are two types of general injuries in Workers’ Compensation: (1) specific injuries and (2) continuous trauma (CT) injuries. 

A specific injury usually arises from an incident at work on a specific date and time that causes an injury.  For example, a slip and fall, or an immediate injury caused by the use of machinery. 

A continuous trauma is an injury or disease that arises repetitive work over time.  For example, carpal tunnel arising from repetitive typing or a shoulder injury arising from repetitive dry walling. 

Both types of injuries are covered by Workers’ Compensation.

If you believe you have sustained a continuous trauma injury, you should promptly contact an attorney to assist you in securing your rights to Workers’ Compensation benefits.

Whether a worker is an independent contractor or an employee is a complicated legal analysis that can only be decided by the courts.  Workers are often misclassified by their employer as independent contractors when they are actually employees who are entitled to Workers’ Compensation benefits. 

If you are unsure if you are an employee and qualify for workers’ compensation benefits, please feel free to contact our office for a free consultation.

When discussing work-related injuries, there is a misconception that a workers’ compensation injury relates solely to orthopedic claims, such as broken bones, torn ligaments or muscles. 

However, Workers’ Compensation benefits apply to all types of injuries.  These include: injuries to body systems (circulatory, digestive, excretory, nervous, respiratory, skin, reproductive, etc.), psychiatric injury, worsening of pre-existing chronic conditions (high blood pressure / hypertension, diabetes, asthma, reduction to vision and hearing, arthritis, etc.), head trauma and brain injuries, and exposure to toxic chemicals and communicable diseases.

The value of each person’s claim is unique and is determined by a number of factors, including the nature and extent of the injury, the injured worker’s age and occupation, and what medical care is needed to cure and relieve the effects of the work injury. 

In general, the more the injury affects your ability to work, the more compensation to which you are entitled.  For example, claims that completely affect the ability to work include partial or total paralysis, amputations, total blindness, injuries to eyes, injuries to both hands, brain injuries, permanent mental incapacity, fecal incontinence, and urinary incontinence.

If you have depression, stress, and/or anxiety that affects your ability to work, you may have a psychiatric injury that is entitled to Workers’ Compensation.  These claims may be restricted by laws specific to psychiatric claims. 

If you feel you may have a psychiatric injury, you should discuss it with a Workers’ Compensation attorney.

The Labor Code establishes a relatively short time limit to commence a claim for Workers’ Compensation benefits.  The normal time limit to file a claim is called the “statute of limitations,” and may be as short as one year from the later of one of these periods: (1) the date of injury; (2) the date of the last indemnity payment for temporary or permanent disability; or (3) the date of the last furnishing of any hospital and medical benefits. 

If your claim is not timely filed before the expiration of this period, your case may be barred entirely.  However, there are exceptions to the one-year statute of limitations. 

If you believe you have a claim for Workers’ Compensation benefits that may be approaching the statute of limitations, you should contact an attorney immediately.

Cutting down on Workers’ Compensation fraud has been a goal of the California Legislature.  In order to prevent claims from being filed in retaliation for an employer terminating an employee, certain laws exist to limit what types of claims may be filed after a termination of employment. 

If you have sustained a work-related injury and feel that you are about to be fired or have already been fired, you should contact an attorney immediately to see if you can still file a claim for Workers’ Compensation benefits.

The original intention of the Workers’ Compensation system was to allow injured workers to represent themselves without the assistance of an attorney.  Unfortunately, over time, many insurance carriers have become more focused on quarterly earnings than the well-being of the injured workers the insurance was designed to protect.  Many of the injured workers that we represent have represented themselves until they find themselves unable to obtain the medical treatment and/or benefits to which they are entitled.

A dispute over how much was paid may cause certain difficulties in proving how much money an injured worker is entitled to for certain benefits.  However, as long as an injured worker can prove that they worked for the employer, a worker with undocumented earnings is still entitled to Workers’ Compensation benefits, including medical treatment. 

All workers in the state of California are entitled to Workers’ Compensation benefits, even if the worker was here illegally. 

Undocumented workers who are injured at work are entitled to Workers’ Compensation benefits without any reporting to the federal government or Immigration Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Workers’ Compensation is a “no fault” system.  Other than in limited circumstances, an injured worker is entitled to Workers’ Compensation benefits even if the injury was their fault.

The statute of limitations may bar certain claims from being filed if an injured worker waits too long.  However, in many instances the employer has not complied with their legal obligations in notifying an injured worker about their rights to receive Workers’ Compensation benefits.  In these instances, the clock for the statute of limitations never starts. 

If you feel that your employer has unfairly had you treating on your private insurance but want to get the Workers’ Compensation benefits you are entitled to, contact a Workers’ Compensation attorney immediately.