Workers' Compensation

As a California worker, you are entitled to a clean and safe working environment including care for any work-related injuries. California workers comp is a “NO FAULT” system. Essentially, you are entitled to compensation and benefits for work-related injuries. This includes medical attention, medications, treatments, and therapy at no out of pocket cost. Workplace injuries are a common occurrence, and it is irrelevant if an injury was the result of your actions or the fault of another. Two parties are represented in workers’ compensation cases: the applicant—the employee who suffered an injury; and the defendants—the employer, insurance company, etc. The Law Offices of Savin & Bursk have successfully pursued thousands of workers’ compensation cases for injured employees, whether your employer was insured or illegally uninsured.

If you have been injured at work, you may be entitled to medical treatment, job retraining, temporary disability and permanent disability payments/benefits. Treatments to relieve the effects of the work injury are available at no cost to you. Treatments can be medical, surgical, internal, chiropractic, dental, psychological, and any other necessary specialty; this includes hospitalization, medicine, and medical supplies. And you are entitled to travel reimbursement for all medical appointments.

If your work injury interferes with your current occupation, you may be entitled to assistance in finding other employment including job retraining. For injuries sustained on or after January 1, 2004, you may in some instanced qualify to receive a voucher for up to $10,000.00 in job retraining. The voucher can be used at the school of your choice depending on several factors such as school accreditation.

While you are injured, you are also entitled to some disability payments. There are two types of disability payments. First, you may be eligible for Temporary Total Disability (TTD) payments. The amount of TTD payments is based upon two thirds of your average weekly wages up to the maximum statutory limit. You can receive TTD payments if you are unable to work during your medical treatment and you must be restricted from returning to work by your primary treating physician through workers compensation. For all injuries occurring after 01/01/04, you are limited to a maximum of 104 weeks of TTD payments. Once you return to work, TTD terminates unless you have been released or returned to work sooner. Second, you may be entitled to Permanent Disability (PD) payments once an injury has become permanent and stationary (P&S) or you are determined to have reached “maximum medical improvement.” The amount of permanent disability for your injury is “rated” based on medical reports from your treating doctor, a qualified medical examiner, and/or the Agreed Medical Examiner. Permanent Disability is based on several factors largely on whether you are able to return to gainful employment and what job restrictions you may have. Permanent Disability will also take into account your age, occupation, and in particular the types of injuries you have sustained.

As your attorneys, we will help you obtain all of the workers’ compensation benefits which you are entitled to. Insurance companies have adjusters, doctors, and attorneys working on their behalf. It is important that you have a Law Firm and Attorneys who are ready to fight for you. Benefits are on a case to case basis, so please call us to discuss helping you receive the maximum benefits under California Law.

Successful workers’ compensation claims typically settle in one of three ways. A Compromise and Release (C&R) is a cash-out settlement generally available to injured workers no longer working for the company in which the injury was sustained. The C&R calculates any unpaid temporary disability, permanent disability, future medicals including medications and any future surgeries, and any unpaid benefits. The injured worker is awarded a large sum of money and controls his/her own future medical care. This type of settlement closes the case forever and will not provide for future treatment on an industrial basis. Note that if you are on Social Security, other considerations may have to be included such as a Medicare Set-Aside Trust.

Two other typical settlement types are (1) Stipulation (Stip) with request for Award and a (2) Findings and Award, both very similar. In both scenarios, the injured worker will receive a permanent disability award weekly as well as any unpaid benefits, and all future injury-related medical treatment will be covered. A Stip and Award is court approved and is generally a pre-trial settlement. A Finding and Award, on the other hand, is the judge’s decision on the case after trial. These awards may also be eligible for a Lump Sum Payment by commutation whereby a judge commutes part or all of your permanent disability award into a lump sum payment. Another advantage to this type of award is that your right to petition for new and further benefits is preserved should your condition worsen within five years of the original injury date.

Dependents of workers who die as a result of a work injury may be entitled to compensation including death benefits, medical treatment costs, and burial expenses.

Regardless of how you were injured at work, it is extremely important that you seek legal advice immediately. Otherwise, you may forever be precluded from bringing a claim—forever forfeiting your legal rights and benefits. Contact our office right away for a free consultation, and let us help you get your life back on the path to full recovery. You have lots of rights under California law. Speak with one of our legal professionals today to see if you have a case. Our firm handles workers’ compensation cases throughout the entire Los Angeles and San Fernando Valley area.

Back injuries are common in the workplace. Many jobs require bending, kneeling, stooping, lifting, driving, pushing, pulling, etc. A single movement can change your back and life forever. In addition, repetitive back motion over a long period of time can be even more damaging than a single lifting injury. California workers’ comp law refers to this as a continuous trauma injury: the injury is caused by aggregate repetitive movement.

If you are experiencing serious back pain and are unsure of the cause, it could very well be a result of your job. You may be entitled to a no-cost back examination by a doctor who will determine if your pain is the result of an industrial injury. You may have more rights then you realize, so call our office and speak with experienced lawyers who have handled workers’ comp cases for over 25 years. Get the benefits you deserve.

Lower extremities generally refer to a person’s legs, hips, knees, ankles and feet. What that means is that it is the part of your body that bears the weight, helps you lift, bend, pull, climb, and maintains your balance. Lower extremity injuries can be very severe at their outset and in trying to go about your typical life thereafter. Your lower body drastically affects your ability to work as well as function in your daily living activities. Whether you were injured during a bad fall or years of driving a truck, injuries to workers knees or legs are common occurrences and you need representation.

Typically referring to the shoulders, these injuries can be extremely painful and truly limit the type of work a person may be capable of in the future. Impingement is one of the more common shoulder injuries resulting in severe pain which occurs when pressure is exerted on the rotator cuff from lifting ones shoulders. This is typical in workers who often need to use their arms above their shoulders such as construction workers. There are numerous shoulder injury possibilities in the work place and you may have several rights including surgery and rehab for serious injuries. Know your rights.

Hand, arm, and wrist injuries are also common in the workplace. These can be caused by a onetime event such as falling down or crushing an arm while working. Injuries and pain can also be caused by your daily work routine.

A job that requires repetitive motion of the hands and wrist can cause injuries. Carpal tunnel syndrome and arthritis are two common injuries of this sort. Some consider carpal tunnel syndrome to be a repetitive stress injury and, as such, to be caused by repetitive motions (most famously, from computer keyboard use). Carpal tunnel can produce mild to extreme symptoms, and these may worsen over time. Carpal tunnel sufferers experience numbness, tingling, or burning in the thumb and fingers—particularly in the index and middle fingers. Some experience pain in the hands or wrists and report to have lost gripping strength. In many situations, pain also develops in the arm and shoulder and includes hand swelling that increases at night.

Arthritis can affect both the large and the small joints of the body including the hands, feet, back, hip, or knee. The disease is essentially acquired from daily wear and tear of the joint. The condition starts with minor pain, but soon the pain can be continuous and even occur at night. Arthritis pain can be debilitating and prevent you from working and other physical activity.

If you feel tingling or numbing sensations as described above, you should contact our law firm. We can determine if you are qualified for any workers’ comp benefits. If these injuries are left untreated, you may face long term health troubles.

Neck Injuries are typically amongst the more terrifying for workers and can result from all sorts of job activities. Office workers sustain neck injuries from looking at computer screens all day; a manual laborer may strain his/her neck in the performance of a job. Neck injuries can worsen over time, and a lack of treatment may lead to serious health risks and discomfort over time. Neck injuries have the ability to put large amounts of strain on your entire body and other systems. If you have a work-related neck injury or believe that you might, please contact our office to determine if you qualify for any benefits.

Psychological claims generally fall into two scenarios. First, purely psychological cases are caused by stress on the job, the work environment, or other factors that cause anxiety, stress, sleeping disorders, digestive problems, or any other psychological and internal problem. Second, some cases that start as industrial injuries, such as a back problem, may lead to a psychological claim. For instance, the stress or anxiety of the injury may affect the client psychologically, or the medication for the injury may have an adverse effect. No matter the cause, psychological problems are very serious and are considered compensable injuries under the law. You do not need to be physically injured to make a psychological claim. If you are suffering from work-related psychological damages, please call our office. A trained professional can review your case and guide you through the process of claiming your full benefits.

Not all harm done in the workplace is immediately visible to employees or their families. Many California jobs place workers in dangerous conditions and expose them to various chemicals, fumes, and toxins on a daily basis. In many instances the harm doesn’t show itself for years and until it is too late. Injuries may include lung cancer, heart disease, mold, asbestos, skin and blood cancers, silica, benzene exposure, and mesothelioma. The possibilities are endless. At Savin & Bursk we take every step, use every resource to pinpoint why and how these life changing events occurred. We hold the employers and manufactures accountable for causing your temporary or permanent disabilities.

Traumatic brain and head injuries are often under diagnosed due to the fact that the symptoms are typically subtle and uncertain. Injuries to your head and brain are to be taken very seriously and can cause numerous problems including cognitive issues, emotional and behavioral problems, and physical impairment to your entire body and nervous system. Accidents such as forklift crashes, auto accidents, falling equipment and crates, or swinging beams have caused severe and catastrophic injuries to California workers. Due to the mysteriousness and invisibility of many claims it is often difficult for the injured worker trying to assert a claim. In many cases the trauma and onset of problems do not take place immediately; events such as alterations in cerebral blood flow with pressure building within the skull. At Savin & Bursk we realize the difficulties and complications with these life altering injuries, and we also know the right doctors to seek medical advice to have you thoroughly checked out. In California, if you even suspect you may have injuries as a result of an incident at work, you are entitled to a thorough examination, and we can help.

California law requires that employers, and/or their workers’ compensation insurance carrier, provide an injured worker with all medical treatments reasonably necessary to cure or relieve the work injury. If you need related medical treatment for the rest of your life, the insurance carrier will be on the hook for those bills. You don’t want to go up against your employer and their insurance companies alone. Savin & Bursk are ready to be on your side and have the experience to handle your case. Call today to ge the benefits you deserve.

While an injured worker is temporarily unable to work, s/he may be entitled to receive temporary disability indemnity. This payment has a maximum payout and will be based on your average weekly wages as well as the date of your injury. These funds are tax free.

In most cases, we are able to obtain a money award for our clients who were injured at work. These awards are in addition to the medical treatment and the temporary disability that we are also often able to obtain. The amount of the permanent disability award will vary depending upon the severity of your injury and the lasting effect of your injury. These benefits are tax free.