Injured workers are in a vulnerable position. After being injured on the job, an employee is often not working, not getting a paycheck, maybe not getting the medical treatment they need, and not getting the answers that can help them. Looking for assistance, injured workers can make their situation worse be getting no advice or the wrong advice. It is important to select the right, experienced worker’s compensation attorney. An attorney’s advertisements and website provide information on the type of law an attorney practices and the type of cases the attorney’s office works on. Attorneys with significant experience in a particular area are generally known by other professionals who work in the same area. For example, an attorney that works on back injury cases, would typically be known among surgeons, rehabilitation physicians, physical therapists, chiropractors, insurance company adjusters and attorneys, vocational specialists and others who also work on back injury cases. Ask your doctors or therapists if they have heard of the worker’s compensation attorney you are considering hiring. Another source of information about attorneys are co-workers who have had similar worker’s compensation injuries. A word of caution; internet websites that claim to rate professionals such as lawyers and doctors are often based on incomplete or inaccurate information. Reviews based on true facts can certainly be helpful, but some “reviews” may be unreliable and less than credible. An important part of selecting an experienced worker’s compensation attorney is to speak with them directly, first on the telephone and then in person.
When calling an experienced worker’s compensation attorney, do not expect to get legal advice specific to your situation. In the initial telephone call, the attorney will ask questions to determine if your situation or case is something that his or her firm can assist you with. The attorney may discuss general worker’s compensation information to the extent necessary to understand your case and decide if an appointment is warranted. If so, the attorney will ask that you bring in any medical records or other documents related to the worker’s compensation claim.
