Brilliant & Neiman, LLC
Workers’ Compensation Rights Lawyers
Often times, an injured employee is left with permanent damage that will continue to impact the employee’s earnings for years to come. This may cause the injured employee to change jobs or need some kind of retraining. It is important to remember that, under the Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Act, the workers’ compensation insurance carrier is NOT required to pay for any type of education or job retraining. These are situations when a settlement of the workers’ compensation case may make sense.
In Pennsylvania, injured workers can settle their workers’ compensation cases through a process called “Compromise & Release”. This Compromise & Release can include medical coverage or could just settle the wage loss part of the case (meaning the injured worker would no longer receive weekly or bi-weekly checks, but would still have access to medical treatment for the injury). If a “full” Compromise & Release is done, which releases the workers’ compensation insurance carrier from all liability (wage loss and medical), the injured worker could be personally responsible for future medical treatment.
This process is complicated by some other benefits an injured worker may receive, such as Medicare. The other forms of benefits must be accounted for in a Compromise & Release. If a settlement is done without addressing some other benefits, most notably Medicare, there can be dire consequences for the injured worker.
The amount of a settlement in workers compensation cases is difficult to calculate. There is no magic formula. Remember that workers compensation does not address pain and suffering, but only wage loss. Every case must be evaluated differently, based on many factors, such as the employee’s earnings before the injury, the employee’s work history and educational background, the employee’s age, the employee’s medical condition (both work-related and not) and the expected future medical treatment, in addition to many other factors.
When a settlement is appropriate will also vary from case to case. Some cases may be able to settle within a year, while other injured workers may remain on workers’ compensation benefits for years.
Both the amount of a settlement, and the timing of a settlement, are complicated issues, which are best handled by attorneys with the skills and knowledge developed from years of experience primarily handling workers’ compensation cases. Since helping injured workers with workers’ compensation matters is all we do, our attorneys are very able to handle these matters. Brilliant & Neiman, LLC “Protecting injured workers is all we do”
E-mail Toll Free Phone Number: 888 WORK HELP |
| Trevose
Three Neshaminy Interplex
Suite 301
Trevose, PA 19053
Phone: (215) 244-8101
Fax: (215) 244-8102 | Allentown
The Sovereign Building
609 Hamilton Mall
Allentown, PA 18101
Allentown (610) 740-1002
Fax: (215) 244-8102 |
Workers’ Compensation Attorneys Working Throughout
Eastern and Central Pennsylvania, in Philadelphia, Bucks, Lehigh, Northampton, Delaware, Lancaster, Berks and surrounding counties.
