If you\’re hurt or injured on the job, or while carrying out duties related to your job, you are entitled to workers\’ compensation money. This is true whether you were injured on the premises of your job or off. The only real deciding factor is whether you were doing anything related to your job at the time of your injury. If you were, you are covered under California state law.

What is Workers\’ Compensation?

Workers\’ compensation is available in every state. While each state\’s laws may differ in slight ways, they are all the same when it comes to the basics of workers\’ compensation, its purpose, and how to get it. Workers\’ compensation is an insurance your employer must carry (this is required by law for employers with over a certain number of employees), and it is designed to pay your medical and sometimes living expenses if you are injured while performing your job.

Through workers\’ compensation, you can get lost wages, money to pay your medical bills for the work-related injury, payments to get rehabilitation and re-training for another type of work (if necessary), and even disability payments if you won\’t be returning to work for a long time (or ever). This insurance is administered by each state, and is funded by employer contributions, which are mandatory according to federal law. In fact, federal employees are also covered under a federally-run and funded workers\’ compensation.

Why Getting a Lawyer is Beneficial if You File a Workers\’ Compensation Claim

It isn\’t unusual for employers to dispute a workers\’ compensation claim from an employee. It is actually in the employer\’s best interest to do this, since their workers\’ compensation payment rates will go up with each claim that is filed and approved. Your employer may try to argue that your claim is invalid because you weren\’t really injured, or because you weren\’t injured while performing the duties of your job. In this case, you will need a lawyer to get your claim approved and paid

The state\’s worker\’s compensation board will review and investigate any claims that are disputed by an employer. Your attorney can present facts in your favor to the board during its investigation, and even present a full case on your behalf as if it were a court case.

Your attorney will also advise you on how to act and what to say (and not say) during the investigation. For example, you will be required to go to a physician who works for the state workers\’ compensation board to get your injury evaluated. It doesn\’t matter if you\’ve already been evaluated by your own doctor. The state doctor is supposed to be impartial, but this is not really true. Anything you say to the state doctor can be reported back to the workers\’ compensation board. Your attorney will advise you on the proper things to say to the doctor and what to avoid saying during your appointment.

If the board rejects your claim, your attorney can appeal it for you. The appeal is heard by officials in the state\’s workers\’ compensation department and presided over by an administrative law judge. If this appeal is rejected, you and your attorney can take your case to state court. Your attorney will take care of all of the details for you, making the appeals process much easier on you, and giving you a greater chance of success.

Conclusion

You have rights under California\’s workers\’ compensation laws. The best way to make sure they are protected is to hire a California workers\’ compensation lawyer. A workers\’ compensation lawyer is used to dealing with difficult employers who want to deny their employees the compensation they deserve. An attorney will also know how to argue your case to an appeals board and to a court in the best way possible. With an attorney on your side, you gain a greater chance of getting your workers\’ compensation claim approved.

WorkersCompLawyerIE is a Ontario California Workers Compensation Lawyer website helping individuals and families with work injury legal issues, Workers Compensation Law

WorkersCompLawyerIE is a Ontario California Workers Compensation Lawyer website helping individuals and families with work injury legal issues, Workers Compensation Law

Author Bio: WorkersCompLawyerIE is a Ontario California Workers Compensation Lawyer website helping individuals and families with work injury legal issues, Workers Compensation Law

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Keywords: Ontario California Workers Compensation Lawyer, Workers Compensation, Workers Compensation Attorney