When it comes to back injuries sustained at work, the old saying “You don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone” rings especially true. The pain of a back injury can be debilitating, and it affects everything you do at work and at home. If you’ve hurt your back in the workplace, you’re not alone.  … Read more

Happy Be Kind to Lawyers Day !  

Not long ago, we wrote about how Sedgwick CMS’s unreasonable delays in delivering treatment to an injured worker killed him.  Well, they’ve recently agreed to a $1,129,600 settlement in response to the allegations brought by the California Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board for labor code violations stemming from Sedgwick’s utilization review practices. What is utilization review,  … Read more

Dancers in the adult entertainment industry are almost guaranteed to be classified by their employers as independent contractors for both tax purposes and workers’ compensation in Georgia. However, just because your boss tells you your injury does not qualify for workers’ comp–because you’re an independent contractor — doesn’t meant it’s true. Sometimes — and I’m sure this is  … Read more

How many times could a company with a homegrown, wholesome name like Ralph’s Grocery Co. turn a blind eye to the medical needs of an injured employee? According to the California Workers’ Compensation Appeals board, 11 is the lucky number. The trouble began in December 2003, when Charles Romano sustained an injury to his left  … Read more

Imagine this scenario: A nursing home employee–let’s call her Janice–is injured on the job when she slips and falls on an unmarked wet spot on the floor. She immediately reports the injury to her supervisor and proceeds to file a request for medical benefits, temporary disability benefits, and whatever else she may need in the  … Read more

Here is the story of one man, his company, and a rather unscrupulous claims adjuster. Kevin Miles, the sole owner and manager of Nebo Ventures, LLC, made his living helping various companies obtain and fulfill contracts with both state and local governments. In 2003, he was contracted by a larger company (formerly known as NovaPro,  … Read more

Many of my clients, after suffering a physical injury at work, find themselves losing interest in activities they used to enjoy. They often want to sleep twice as many hours as they used to need to feel rested. They’re anxious. They begin feeling hopeless. If that’s you, here’s some good news:  a physically injured worker can  … Read more

Often in my workers’ compensation law practice, clients indicate how disturbed they are by unsafe working conditions, safety hazards, etc. at the place of employment where they’ve injured themselves on the job.  Even as they’re out of work on temporary total disability (TTD) benefits, they want to know what they can do to help others  … Read more

Unfortunately, the Atlanta State Board of Workers’ Compensation has a few Administrative Law Judges and many, many Georgia workers’ compensation claims to be heard at each calendar call. In my experience, at least 99% of “first set” hearings are postponed at least 30 days. More often than not, even “second set” hearings are postponed. Why? When we  … Read more