Workers Compensation Lawyer in Chicago, Illinois Work Injury Attorney

We just took on the Illinois workers' compensation claim of a woman who severely injured her shoulder while at a bar riding a mechanical bull.  She didn't work at the bar, so how is this a claim?

This woman is an Illinois resident who was hurt while attending a seminar in another state.  As a result she is considered a traveling employee.  The law in Illinois work injury cases is that if you are a traveling employee, almost any injury you suffer while traveling for the benefit of your employer is covered as a work related injury.  In this case, even though she was out at a bar, the woman wouldn't have been in the bar or the state where she got hurt if it wasn't for employer.

It sounds like a crazy law, but it is what it is and it benefits workers.  You could be showering at home getting ready for work and slip and wouldn't have a case.  But if you were at a hotel and fell you would have a case.

The law originally rose from a worker that got hurt in Hawaii while riding a bicycle around a volcano.

So if you are a traveling employee and get hurt, even when you aren't furthering the interests of your employer, you might have a case.

We are workers' compensation attorneys that help people with Illinois work injuries anywhere in IL via our statewide network of attorneys.  Contact us and we will answer your questions or find the right lawyer for your situation.

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We have received calls from three prospective clients this week, two of which had an attorney, one of which settled a case last year with a different lawyer.  What do they all have in common?  None of them could tell us the name of the attorney that represented them?

Now I don't know if I should blame the client on this or not.  This case is your life on the line and just like raising a child, you have to show interest and personal responsibility.

That said, I got the impression that these lawyers spent so little time with the clients and dumped them off on their secretaries.  With that type of service it's not surprising that they didn't know their names.

We won't ever guarantee a client a result.  But I do guarantee that if you don't know our name once you hire us, it won't be because we haven't communicated with you on a regular basis.  Sending a letter or e-mail once a month and making a phone call is an easy thing to do and we do it.  A good attorney wants to know what is going on with their clients.

We are workers' compensation attorneys that help people with Illinois work injuries anywhere in IL via our statewide network of attorneys.  Contact us and we will answer your questions or find the right lawyer for your situation.

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There is an Illinois workers' compensation attorney that we don't like.  The reason that we don't like him is because about once a week we get a call from someone he is representing.  It's always a different person calling, but the conversation usually stems from the fact that they don't get returned phone calls from that office or that attorney isn't fighting for them.  Quite often we investigate this and find that this lawyer is flat out lying about the case or telling the client to take much less money than could be obtained with a little hard work.

This same lawyer has said that he has won compensation on 98% of his cases.  That sounds impressive unless you know anything about Illinois work injury law.  The reality is that in pretty much any case you could settle for some sort of compensation from an insurance company.  Most insurance companies will pay you $1,000 just to go away.  The reality is that most good attorneys only take on serious injury cases and while we may not win every issue for our clients, just about every client we have represented has come away with a significant result.

The reason this is true is that we don't take minor cases.  It's just as much work to get a great result for someone with a broken finger as it is to do the same for someone with a broken arm.  The broken arm case is worth more money so we focus on helping people with serious injuries only.

So beware attorneys that promote something that sounds too good to be true.  Before hiring an attorney find out how they will communicate with you and if they have clients that will recommend them.

We are workers' compensation attorneys that help people with Illinois work injuries anywhere in IL via our statewide network of attorneys.  Contact us and we will answer your questions or find the right lawyer for your situation.

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We have had clients that sing the praises of their chiropractors.  That is all fine and good, but part of our service is honest talk and no honest attorney will tell a client that has a serious back or neck injury to rely on a chiropractor to treat them.

The reality is that chiro's have much less credibility with insurance companies and judges that do orthopedic doctors.  It's better for your case and likely better for your health to be treated with an ortho.  They provide potential treatment options that chiropractors can't and their role is cure, not comfort.

 We are workers' compensation attorneys that help people with Illinois work injuries anywhere in IL via our statewide network of attorneys.  Contact us and we will answer your questions or find the right lawyer for your situation.

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If you get hurt when working and are an independent contractor then you are responsible for paying for your own workers' compensation insurance.  If you don't have it then you are out of luck.

We've seen more and more lately that people who are classified as independent contractors by their employer really are workers.  They might call you an independent contractor, they might not take taxes out of your check, but in reality you are still an employee.

There are a few factors that come into play, but the number one test is whether or not they have control over you.  In other words, are you free to do what you want at the pace you want when you want or do you have to do what they say.

One guy that called us was threatened that if he didn't transport an unsafe truck that he would be fired and not receive any pay for the work he had done.  He continued driving the truck and it rolled over shattering his leg.  He hired us to file a workers' compensation claim and because the trucking company set his schedule and barred him from driving for anyone else we are confident that we will win the case for him.

Remember, just because you are called an independent contractor does not mean that is how the Illinois Workers' Compensation Commission will see it.  Describe your situation to us and we will give you an honest, un-biased opinion at no cost.

We are workers' compensation attorneys that help people with Illinois work injuries anywhere in IL via our statewide network of attorneys.  Contact us and we will answer your questions or find the right lawyer for your situation.

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Chondromalacia, or runner’s knee, is a common injury among young athletes, and especially runners. Men tend to be more prone to runner’s knee than women. Runner’s knee is caused by an irritation to the under-surface of the kneecap known as the patella. The patella is coated in smooth cartilage, and it usually glides across the knee cap as the knee bends. However, if the knee tends to press up against one side of the kneecap, the cartilage is worn down and the patella is irritated. The result of an irritated patella is the kneecap or anterior knee pain known as Chondromalacia, or runner’s knee.

Treatment for Chondromalacia (runner’s knee)

Surgery is rarely necessary for treatment of Chonromalacia. Rest and physical therapy can effectively heal Chondromalacia. Usually adequate rest involves several weeks away from athletic activity and eventually a gradual return back to activity. Effective physical therapy usually focuses on strengthening of the quadriceps and hamstring muscles. Anti-inflammatory medications can also reduce pain and swelling. In rare cases, surgery may be an option.

We are workers' compensation attorneys that help people with Illinois work injuries anywhere in IL via our statewide network of attorneys.  Contact us and we will answer your questions or find the right lawyer for your situation.

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We don't like to take cases over from other attorneys, but consider it when the lawyer is clearly screwing up, is someone we know doesn't fight for their clients or doesn't have a lot of Illinois work injury experience.

When we do take on a new client, we sign a contract that entitles us to 20% of whatever is recovered when the case is resolved.  It's the exact same contract you should have signed in the beginning of the case. 

The good thing to know from a client's standpoint is that even if you get a new attorney, the lawyer fees should never exceed 20% of what is recovered.  In other words, that is the most that ALL of the lawyers can get and it's up to the lawyers to fight it out as to who gets what.

So if you are looking to switch attorneys, we may or may not be able to help.  But don't hesitate to inquire because it won't cost you any more money.

We are workers' compensation attorneys that help people with Illinois work injuries anywhere in IL via our statewide network of attorneys.  Contact us and we will answer your questions or find the right lawyer for your situation.

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We've received a bunch of calls lately from injured workers who seem to have great cases and have attorneys that regularly handle work injury claims.  The reason we got these calls are usually something like, "My lawyer is a jerk" or "My attorney doesn't answer my questions", etc.

We are always startled to hear that an attorney would treat their client this way.  Our job is hard, but not that hard.   Besides, once you handle these cases for a long time there aren't too many difficult situations that come up.

We think the problem is two-fold: 1. Some attorneys take every case that comes through the door so they are over-whelmed with calls from clients.  We limit the cases we take on.  If you break your finger on the job, it's probably a case, but not one that we would pursue.  2. A lot of lawyers just hate what they do so they take it out on their staff and clients.  We are fortunately not that jaded yet.

If your attorney isn't treating you well let us know.  We will give you an honest evaluation as to whether or not sticking with them is a good idea or if it's a time for a switch.

We are workers' compensation attorneys that help people with Illinois work injuries anywhere in IL via our statewide network of attorneys.  Contact us and we will answer your questions or find the right lawyer for your situation.

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With the terrible economic times and numerous stories of job losses, it's not surprising that many injured workers don't have a job to go back to.  If you are injured on the job and have any restrictions, if your employer can't find a job for you, they owe you temporary total disability benefits.  This is true even if your restrictions are permanent.

All that said, one law, that most attorneys don't enforce, requires an employer to come up with a vocational rehabilitation plan if you have been off of work for more than 120 days.  In these hard times it makes sense to be pro-active in finding a way to get you back to work.

By filing a motion with the Arbitrator to make this plan happen, you can motivate your employer to locate a job that works for you or if no job is ever going to be available, find out what other careers you can do.  This law is especially important for workers who have had back surgery and no longer can do heavy lifting.

Does this sound confusing?  If it does just call us at (312) 346-5578 and we'll explain.

We are workers' compensation attorneys that help people with Illinois work injuries anywhere in IL via our statewide network of attorneys.  Contact us and we will answer your questions or find the right lawyer for your situation.

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We get e-mails and calls all the time from people wanting to know "What is my case worth?"  Today was from a guy who just broke his leg and had surgery less than a month ago.  Needless to say it's too soon to tell him what it is worth.

That said, there are often times when the answer to what a case is worth is, "there is no amount that makes sense for you."  That doesn't mean you are going to become a millionaire; rather it means that we think  you would be best served by keeping your medical rights open as relates to your injury for the rest of your life.

To achieve this, all we have to do is take your case to arbitration and win.  Assuming your injury is work related, this will happen.  The negative is that you don't get a lump sum settlement.  The positive is that you still get paid what your case is worth (it just gets spread out in weekly payments over a year or so depending on how seriously you were hurt) and your medical rights as relate to this injury stay open forever.

In other words, if you have a back fusion and may need surgery in the future, this is a way to have peace of mind that any future medical care will be paid for.

We always tell our clients to think long-term and suggest that you take that approach too.

We are workers' compensation attorneys that help people with Illinois work injuries anywhere in IL via our statewide network of attorneys.  Contact us and we will answer your questions or find the right lawyer for your situation.

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We just got a call from someone that we can't help.  His case went to trial and the only issue was supposed to be what is his case worth.  In other words, it was a real simple case and the trial could not have been easier because the employer admitted the accident took place and the injury was related to the accident.

Unfortunately, the caller's attorney "forgot" to include their medical bills.  Because the case is not disputed in any way these medical bills would have been automatically paid.  Now if this was just a $500 bill that would have been unfortunate, but not a huge deal.  In this case the unpaid bill was approximately $61,000!!! 

To make a mistake like that is unheard of.  Before any case goes to trial a work comp attorney should call every medical provider and get an itemized bill for anything unpaid.  Now this caller likely has a legal malpractice lawsuit, that doesn't guarantee anything and it is an overall sign of an attorney who doesn't do a good job.

Our advice, if you are with an attorney and they appear to be sloppy, think of getting rid of them before it's too late.  And make sure they have every medical bill in hand.

We are workers' compensation attorneys that help people with Illinois work injuries anywhere in IL via our statewide network of attorneys.  Contact us and we will answer your questions or find the right lawyer for your situation.

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