Hiring a lawyer is an essential step to securing the benefits you need after a work-related incident. After all, even if there are benefits already in place through your employer’s insurance company, there is a good chance that you will not get full compensation without legal assistance. When working through a legal battle with your employer, here are three things your lawyer will want to know.
Were You Injured While Performing Your Duties?
If you were injured on the job, you will want to work with a lawyer in order to get the greatest monetary benefits from your incident. However, the first question is, what constitutes a duty that is both work-related and a justifiable reason to demand workers’ compensation?
In general, a work-related accident occurs when some sort of incident at work causes or heavily contributes to an injury or illness. This can even be a pre-existing illness if the incident significantly aggravates your situation. However, determining whether the illness was directly caused by or aggravated by a work incident can be challenging to prove. That is why you will want to work closely with a lawyer to help gather the right evidence for your claim.
Were There Safety Practices?
Part of gathering the right evidence is analyzing how and when safety practices were either maintained or ignored, both by you and by your employer. Even the common safety signs can mean the difference between a won or lost case. It can be very difficult to prove misconduct, so informing your lawyer of all safety practices and misconducts is essential for a successful case.
If there were safety practices in place, you will need the evidence necessary to prove that your employer was aware of these safety practices but willfully ignored them. You will also need evidence that the misconduct directly caused or correlated with your injury. Working with a lawyer will help you put together those pieces of evidence to maximize your chances of legal success.
Do You Have Pre-existing Injuries or Illnesses?
If you have suffered from or have recently suffered from any illnesses or injuries, your employer may try to use this as a rebuttal for full or even partial compensation towards your work injury. In order to be as prepared as possible, let your lawyer know about any of these pre-existing injuries or illnesses so that they can defend you as best as possible in court.
While working through a personal injury case can be stressful, hiring a lawyer will make it a much smoother process—as well as increase your chances for getting the compensation you deserve. Just make sure that you keep these three questions in mind as you converse with your lawyer so that they can be as prepared as possible to defend you in court.
If you’ve been hurt, we can represent you so you can get the compensation you deserve. In Contact us now for personal injury protection!