Workers Compensation Lawsuit Guide 2024

In most states, work injury claims are not resolved through civil lawsuits like many personal injury cases. Instead, a separate workers’ compensation system ensures that employees are covered for on-the-job injuries.

Under the rules in most states, employers must buy workers’ compensation insurance. This insurance covers accidents and illnesses employees experience as a result of their job duties. If an employee is hurt or gets sick due to their job, the employee can recover compensation by filing a workers’ comp claim.

Workers’ comp claims can be easier and faster to resolve than a workers’ compensation lawsuit. Injured workers can also get money from their employers after getting hurt even in situations where they would not be able to win a standard personal injury case in court.

While workers’ comp laws streamline the process of recovering compensation after a job-related injury, they also limit an employee’s right to sue. In the vast majority of situations, workers cannot file a workers’ compensation lawsuit or file any type of personal injury claim against their employers. They must handle their claim within the separate workers’ compensation system.

Workers compensation laws require the payment of certain types of compensation. Although the rules may vary slightly by state, injured workers can typically make a claim to recover the following:

• Payment for medical bills arising from a work injury. This includes doctor’s care, surgical and medical services, hospital treatments, prescription medications, prescription supplies, orthopedic appliances and orthopedic supplies.
• Wage loss benefits. These provide payment if you cannot work at all due to your job-related injuries or if you earn less due to impairments that prevent you from being able to work to your full potential
• Specific loss benefits: If certain injuries occur, such as permanent disfigurement, loss of hearing, vision loss or loss of use of your limbs or other body parts, you can receive a specific amount of additional compensation.

If work-related injuries prove to be fatal, surviving loved ones can also generally collect death benefits from a workers’ comp insurer.

Unlike with a personal injury claim, you cannot recover compensation for pain and suffering or emotional distress when you make a workers’ compensation claim. And you cannot obtain punitive damages. However, you can often begin receiving payment immediately for the losses that are covered.

One of the major benefits of making a workers’ comp claim instead of filing a workers’ compensation lawsuit is that you do not need to prove an employer was negligent to recover funds through workers’ comp.

If you file a personal injury lawsuit, you must show the employer caused your injury through their carelessness.

To successfully prove a workers’ comp claim, you only need to show the injury occurred while you were performing work duties and prove the extent of your losses.

In most cases, you cannot file a workers’ compensation lawsuit because you must recover your monetary compensation through a workers’ comp claim. There are, however, some limited exceptions to the workers’ comp rules that prevent you from suing an employer.

Although the rules may differ slightly by state, in general, you can sue an employer for a work-related injury if:

• Your employer intentionally caused you to suffer an injury. This requires more than mere carelessness. You would have to show your employer meant to hurt you.
• Your employer doesn’t have enough workers’ comp coverage. If your employer did not buy workers’ comp insurance or had too little insurance, you could file a lawsuit. Employers in almost all states must have workers’ comp coverage, so this likely means that the company you work for broke the law

If someone else besides your employer was responsible for your injury that occurred on-the-job, you can also file a third-party lawsuit. For example, if you were hurt by machinery at work and there was a defect in the machine, you might be able to sue the manufacturer of the defective product that harmed you.

There are both advantages and disadvantages to filing a workers’ compensation lawsuit versus making a workers’ compensation claim.

Pros of a Workers’ Compensation Lawsuit

The main advantage of a workers’ compensation lawsuit is the potential to get more compensation that would not be available with a workers’ comp claim alone. This can include payment for pain and suffering, emotional distress and even punitive damages

Cons of a Workers’ Compensation Lawsuit

There are also disadvantages o to a workers’ compensation lawsuit.
It can take much more time to resolve your case this way, and it can be harder to successfully recover compensation because you typically must prove intentional wrongdoing on the part of your employer. The process is also bumpier and less streamlined.

Whether you are making a claim for damages through the workers’ compensation system or you are thinking of filing a workers’ compensation lawsuit, it is useful to get help from an experienced attorney.

A work injury lawyer can guide you through the process of estimating damages, negotiating a settlement with your employer or filing suit if doing so is necessary. Contact an attorney as soon as possible after an on-the-job injury to protect your rights.