Practice Areas

• Workers' Compensation
• Personal Injury
• Social Security Disability
• Employment Law

Firm News

• When the injured worker returned to work he was immediately fired...
  
• Workers' Compensation: The IC ruled that the employer, who willingly paid the medical claim and workers comp for the employee's foot injury, must also pay for pain management because this injury aggravated the employee's pre-existing fibromyalgia and hypertension and was now considered a chronic condition. Although it is tough to win these claims we can usually do it if we the treating physician will agree that the pre-existing condition is worse now than it was and that this change is due to the worker's comp accident....
  
• Workers' Compensation: The Industrial Commission denied the employee's claim for temporary partial disability compensation. The Commission ruled that the reduction in wages that our client received was because of problems with the company's workload due to the economy. It was determined that he didn't receive less pay because of his injury or from the less-paying job within the company that he had to take because of the injury....
  
• Workers' Compensation: The NC Industrial Commission determined that the employer was required to pay our client's medical bills and also continue workers' compensation payments until our client could find a job with his limited physical capabilities. The employer was unable to find work for him at the company and he was fired, which was unacceptable, although it was explained by the employer as happening because of excessive absences....
  
• Workers' Compensation: The North Carolina Industrial Commission threatened to hold CNA in contempt of court because they refused to authorize the medical tests which would prove that the plaintiff was unable to do his job. This was a classic example of an adjuster getting an opinion from a reliable doctor and then refusing any other evaluation which could help the injured worker....
  
• Workers Compensation: The North Carolina Industrial Commission held that National Benefits Association had wrongfully denied this claim for more than a year...but only when the Industrial Commission finally heard all the evidence -- that the employer admitted that they knew the plaintiff was hurt, that they had sent him to a doctor but didn't follow his direction, and that there was no way our client could do his job with his severely-injured back....
  
• Workers' Compensation: North Carolina Industrial Commission says Liberty Mutual must provide yardcare and housecleaning to an injured brickmason....
  
• Workers' Compensation: North Carolina Industrial Commission rules that a restaurant dishwasher who slipped and fell, and was taken straight to an emergency room has proven that he was injured on the job....
  
• Workers' Compensation: North Carolina Industrial Commission finds that Diebold and Broadspire MUST pay weekly benefits even after they fired the injured worker from her "light duty" job....
  
• Workers' Compensation: North Carolina Industrial Commission rules against The Hartford Insurance Company and holds that a nurse who was still on her employer's property when she was hit by a car is within the course and scope of her employment and entitled to workers' compensation benefits....
  

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Library

Workers' Compensation

• Psssst! Who's that following you?
• NCIC Form 25T: Mileage Reimbursement form
• Form 28T: Notice of Termination of Compensation by Reason of Trial Return to Work
• Form 33R: Response to Request that Claim Be Assigned for Hearing
• 10 Things Your Insurance Adjuster Won't Tell You (download)

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Testimonials

"Mr. Richardson and Ms. York were always available - and they did a terrific job."

"Chip Permar and his team were outstanding!"

"You showed so much concern for me as a person -- there is such a personal touch to everything you do."

"I don't know what I would have done without you!"

"We were nervous at first, but you put us at ease."

"John and Stephanie were patient with me. Great teamwork!"

"Being injured turned into a life-changing event, but it was comforting to know that you understood me and were only a phone call away."

"You guys are on top of your game."

"I researched law firms on the internet, and I could not have asked for a better attorney."

"Whenever I called I got answers."

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Eight Misconceptions About Workers' Compensation

1. Workers’ Compensation is simple. If your injury case doesn’t take you out of work, require surgery, or hurt your ability to do your regular job and pay your bills, then yes, it’s simple. Anything beyond that and it can turn into a nightmare. The workers’ comp system is a minefield that was laid out by insurance companies and employers. One wrong step and your clai m can well go up in smoke. The OTP Solution: Educate, educate, educate. We want our clients, and any other injured workers, to understand the laws which control their case. We believe that you will make wiser choices if you understand what everyone's motivation is.
2. The Industrial Commission will take care of me. The Industrial Commission is a bureaucracy which processes claims very, very slowly. If your claim is denied it will likely take at least 12 months for the Industrial Commission to rule on your case. If that’s how the Industrial Commission operates when an injured worker has no income and is receiving no medical treatment, think how slowly they’ll move when the adjuster decides to just stop your checks for a while or refuse to authorize an MRI. The OTP Solution: We aggressively press the Industrial Commission to do the right thing. This means filing motions regularly and, more importantly, going to hearings frequently. We take far more cases to hearings than any other firm around.
3. Every injured worker needs a lawyer. No they don’t. The OTP Solution: We’re some of the only attorneys who will tell you that. Everyone needs information – freely offered without strings attached. If an attorney won’t do that they’re likely thinking more about their wallet than about your case. If your claim is denied you’ll need a lawyer. If your claim is accepted you may not; generally if you’re going to have a permanent disability, may not be able to return to your regular job, or will have an operation then it’s worthwhile talking with a lawyer. No lawyer should every charge you for just talking. We won't and we don't. And by the way -- you know those firms that say they'll come to your house? One of the biggest tacks on an "expense" of up to $200.00 at the end of your claim if they did that. We think that's unconscionable.
4. My employer will look out for me. Most decisions in a workers’ comp claim are made by the insurance company and NOT by the employer. In fact the fine print of the insurance policy usually requires the employer do what the adjuster asks. So even if your boss thinks you’re the greatest employee ever it is the insurance adjuster who is calling the shots. The OTP Solution: We maintain a healthy skepticism of employer’s offers to make work for you or to accommodate your restrictions. We understand that good jobs are tough to come by so we’re not going to poke our finger in your employer’s eye just for fun. Having said that naively trusting an employer who has a track record of firing injured workers is foolish.
5. If I hold out the Industrial Commission will award me a lot of money. Sadly, this isn’t the case. Unless you return to your old job or work at your old pay scale the Industrial Commission will only award you benefits to be paid out one week at a time. They do not give lump sum awards except for very, very small ones when a person is still working. The OTP Solution: Because the laws are so stingy we don’t let adjusters cut any corners at all. You simply cannot afford that. Plus if they can get away with robbing you of a few bucks here and a little more there by the time it comes to settle your case they’ll know they can take advantage of you.
6. I’ll be fired if I get a lawyer. This myth is spread by adjusters, employers, and some of their favorite doctors. We believe it to be completely false. In fact, it has been our experience that employers do NOT fire claimants who have attorneys – it’s too easy for the fired worker to bring a lawsuit when they’ve already got a lawyer. The OTP Solution: Like we said above, we’re not out to cause problems. We’re like bodyguards – by letting our presence be known in a quiet but firm manner most problems are avoided. Our reputation is known so widely that most employers know there’s no use in playing games with our clients.
7. Denied claims cannot be won. This isn’t true at all. You will have a difficult time of it but we’ve won scores of denied claims. We’ve taken some extremely difficult cases to the Industrial Commission, the Court of Appeals, and even to the Supreme Court, and won them. The OTP Solution: We carefully help clients with denied cases look at the facts of their case, compare it to North Carolina law, advise them of their options and then execute the plan.
8. Never rock the workers’ comp boat. Wrong again. Comp is the classic “nice guys finish last” area of the law. Some of the most deserving people we’ve ever seen come to us after they’ve been horribly victimized by insurance adjusters. When we ask why they’re coming to us now the response is usually “I didn’t want to be one of those kinds of people. The kind who go and hire lawyers.” We’re not offended by this, but a lot of trouble could have been spared if they hired us sooner. The OTP Solution: Teddy Roosevelt put it wisely: Speak softly and carry a big stick. We don't holler and scream and put on a show. We simply walk into court fully prepared to win. And then we do.