Illinois statute of limitations for workers' compensation
A lot of readers ask how long they have to bring a case. Some have only been hurt a few days ago, some are going on a few years.
The statute of limitations to bring an Illinois workers' compensation claim is the longer of three years from the accident date or two years from the last payment of compensation.
Three years from the accident date is usually straight forward unless you have a repetitive trauma injury like a back problem from a lot of lifting over time.
Two years from the last payment of compensation includes not only workers' compensation benefits like TTD or payment of medical benefits, but also payments for medical bills related to the injury through group insurance (if obtained from your employer) or disability policy benefits (again it must be through your employer). We have seen cases where a statute of limitation had passed, but because an insurance company paid a bill all of the sudden the case was alive again. This is very rare and as far as we know, workers comp is the only area of Illinois law where you can miss the time limits for filing a case and then possibly get it back.
There is also a law that says you must give your employer notice of an injury within 45 days of when you knew or reasonably should have known that it might be related to a work accident. Failure to do so can cause your case to be dismissed.
The reality is that if you are hurt on the job you don't want to lose your right to benefits over a technicality. By hiring an attorney this should never happen.
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.
My husband was stepping into a forktruck & felt a pop in his Right knee with pain so bad his supervisor had him leave work & go to urgent care, subsequently he was found to have torn cartilage which prevented him from bending the knee & had to be removed in arthroscopic surgery (which took weeks for them to approve all the while he is in pain & can't bend the knee). Since the surgery he remains in great pain & the surgeon said he can't go back to work without a knee replacement because with the torn cartilagr removed there is not enough left. WC nurse said they won't approve the surgery. We admit he had pre-existing arthritis, but probably caused by his work (electrical maintenance) walking & kneeling on cement, climbing steps & ladders; & also, about 10 years ago same workplace someone left a material hazard which tripped my husband & caused a torn meniscus on the left knee. After surgical repair he went back to work but since that time both knees began to develope pain. He never was offered a settlement at that time even though WC paid for the medical & time off...? Case never signed off on, it seems too this prior injury over time lead to the "pre-existing" arthritis, which did require treatment (medications & injections) but never prevented him from working. What should he do? Right now told to give physical therapy more time as its "only been 6 weeks" but the cartilage won't regrow! He was told not to walk without a crutch & has more pain than he ever did before the injury. Can they deny his surgery based on the arthritis which may have been triggered by the work accident 10 years ago? The statute of limitations may not be valid as he was treated for the knee pain since the prior injury & was never offered any settlement at the time, which he thought was strange but just tried to get along to avoid problems at work.
My husband was stepping into a forktruck & felt a pop in his Right knee with pain so bad his supervisor had him leave work & go to urgent care, subsequently he was found to have torn cartilage which prevented him from bending the knee & had to be removed in arthroscopic surgery (which took weeks for them to approve all the while he is in pain & can't bend the knee). Since the surgery he remains in great pain & the surgeon said he can't go back to work without a knee replacement because with the torn cartilagr removed there is not enough left. WC nurse said they won't approve the surgery. We admit he had pre-existing arthritis, but probably caused by his work (electrical maintenance) walking & kneeling on cement, climbing steps & ladders; & also, about 10 years ago same workplace someone left a material hazard which tripped my husband & caused a torn meniscus on the left knee. After surgical repair he went back to work but since that time both knees began to develope pain. He never was offered a settlement at that time even though WC paid for the medical & time off...? Case never signed off on, it seems too this prior injury over time lead to the "pre-existing" arthritis, which did require treatment (medications & injections) but never prevented him from working. What should he do? Right now told to give physical therapy more time as its "only been 6 weeks" but the cartilage won't regrow! He was told not to walk without a crutch & has more pain than he ever did before the injury. Can they deny his surgery based on the arthritis which may have been triggered by the work accident 10 years ago? The statute of limitations may not be valid as he was treated for the knee pain since the prior injury & was never offered any settlement at the time, which he thought was strange but just tried to get along to avoid problems at work.
The fact that he has a pre-existing condition should not impact this case because his initial injury was so old and he had been treatment free. The law in Illinois is clear that if a job accident aggravates or accelerates a condition then it's a case. He sounds like he needs surgery and if we filed a trial motion we are very confident that we can get it for him. It does sound too late to file on the first case, but again we don't think that will matter. Let us know if you want our help.
I am a healthy 31 year old woman. Back in 2007, I was at my workplace lifting very heavy boxes. I suddenly felt horrible pain in my right knee, and went to the doctor. I had a bad meniscus tear, and required surgery. My company made me wait 2 months in severe pain (and I still went to work) until thye would approve the surgery. Finally I got the surgery and felt better. The surgeon told me that I would occasionally feel pain in that knee for the rest of my life. For the first year, I was pain free. Then I started having trouble kneeling and would get occasional pain. I mentioned this to my boss, and asked her what I should do. She never responded. A few months later, I was fired from my position. They said it was because of very insignificant reasons. I never got any settlement from the company. Now it is 2010, and my knee still hurts. When I walk alot, or kneel, or stretch, it feels like it is going to tear again. Is the company still liable?
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We respond: Whether or not it's too late depends on many factors including when you got hurt (what month) and when your last treatment was.
I was mugged April 26 2006 at work i suffered a serve concusion, my employer threatened to fire me if i filed a workmans comp claim, Im driver Iwas in a wreck in dec 2oo9 I filed a claim i was fired. The company told the press I refused treament,but I was in the hospital now i dont think i could ever get driving, is this slander!