Maximizing Your California Workers’ Compensation Benefits

Certified Los Angeles attorneys are on your side

Workers’ compensation law is designed to provide workers hurt on the job with quick and adequate compensation for medical expenses, lost wages and other out-of-pocket cost. But even where the injury is genuine and job-related, a number of variables can impact how much you are paid and for how long. At Goldschmid, Silver & Spindel, our attorneys understand the nuances of California workers’ compensation law and how to structure a claim best calculated to obtain maximum benefits allowable.

Understanding California workers’ compensation benefits

Each workers’ compensation case is unique and eligibility for benefits is determined by the facts of each situation. It is important to understand how workers’ comp works and the availability of benefits, which may include:

• Medical care — Your employer must pay for all medical care that is reasonably required to cure or relieve your injury. This includes surgical, chiropractic, acupuncture and hospital treatment as well as nursing, medicines, medical and surgical supplies, crutches, and apparatuses, including orthotic and prosthetic devices and services.

Reimbursement for costs of examination — If your employer, the employer’s insurance company or any workers’ comp authority requests that you submit to a physician examination, you must be paid for all reasonable expenses of transportation, meals and lodging needed to attend. If you have returned to work but must still attend follow-up doctor’s appointments, your employer must pay your wages for the time you spend at those visits.

• Temporary disability payments — This is compensation for loss of wages due to an injury that prevents you from doing your usual job while recovering.
• Permanent disability payments — This is compensation for a disability that makes you totally or partially unable to return to your job.
• Life pension — This pays out for the rest of your life once disability payments run out, if your permanent disability is greater than 70 percent.
• Supplemental job displacement payments — These vouchers help pay for retraining or skill enhancement if you don’t recover completely and don’t return to work for your employer.
• Death benefits — These are payments to a spouse, children or other dependents for an employee who dies from a work-related injury or illness.

In the worst-case scenario, death benefits are available to a spouse, children or other dependents of a worker who died from an employment-related injury or illness.

Why it’s important to hire a qualified workers’ comp lawyer

Whatever  loyalty you may feel to your employer, remember that the employer will look out for its own best interests. Even if it seems like the company and its insurers are cooperating in the claims process, they may try to pay as little on your claim as possible. You need a capable attorney by your side. We are certified by the State Bar as specialists in workers’ compensation law. Our attorneys will go over the details of your case and explain what benefits you are entitled to and how we will fight to make sure you receive them.

Contact our knowledgeable workers’ compensation attorneys in Los Angeles

For more than 40 years, Goldschmid, Silver & Spindel has been helping injured employees and their families recover benefits from employers of all sizes and in multiple industries across the California. We charge no up-front legal fees. To learn more, schedule a free consultation by calling 213-251-5900 or contacting our Los Angeles office online.