The workers compensation system is intended to prevent employees from suing employers. However, there are cases when a Disability Lawyer in Holland, MI may help an injured worker file a lawsuit. The suit would generally not be against the employer but against a third party, such as the manufacturer of defective machinery.
About the Workers Compensation Program
Workers comp was created not only for the advantage of employers but for employees as well. The process is streamlined when medical expenses and lost wages are covered by an insurance program instead of through the court system. About 93 percent of these claims are approved without any denials or need for appeals. This is a dramatic contrast from Social Security Disability applications, of which only 33 percent are initially approved.
Reasons for Filing a Lawsuit
Deliberate Acts of Harm
A Disability Lawyer in Holland, MI usually only can sue the employer if the employer intentionally harmed the worker. This situation is rare and difficult to prove. According to Michigan legislation, the employer must have acted deliberately and have intended to injure the employee. Most incidents like this involve a company owner getting into an altercation with an employee and going on a physical attack.
Even if the company was deliberately negligent, such as delaying maintenance on equipment for too long, that negligence normally is not grounds for a lawsuit. An injury that occurred for this reason would be handled through the workers compensation benefits program.
Noncompliance
Another reason an attorney with an organization like Bleakley Law Offices P C could file suit is if the employer was required to carry workers comp insurance but did not do so. Most employers are required to have this insurance coverage but occasionally a company tries to sidestep the law. In that case, an attorney may sue the company on behalf of the injured employee.
Tangible and Intangible Factors
Workers compensation only pays for tangible factors like medical bills, lost income, adaptive equipment, taxi rides to appointments and, sometimes, retraining for a new occupation. In contrast, a lawsuit can demand compensation for intangible aspects like pain and suffering, and reduced quality of life.
