If you are injured while at work or performing duties for your employer, you may be eligible to pursue a workers' compensation claim. Workers' compensation refers to a form of insurance that every employer is required to maintain for purposes of providing (1) wage replacement and (2) medical benefits and like expenses, in each case, to employees who are injured in the course of employment. The key requirement of a workers' compensation claim is that the employee was working within the scope of his or her employment at the time of the injury, and whether or not the injury was the fault of the employee, the employer or neither party normally does not affect on the employee's ability to recover. These types of cases are different from personal injury cases, which are injuries that occur outside of employment.
The guaranteed compensation and benefits are provided in exchange for the employee's relinquishment of any and all other rights to sue his or her employer on the basis of negligence; stated otherwise, the workers' compensation is the exclusive source of recovery for the employment injury (except in the case of certain claims against third parties). The tradeoff between guaranteed, limited coverage and a lack of recourse outside of the workers' compensation framework is considered "the compensation bargain." This "bargain" prevents employers from having to face the extensive liability that results under normal tort law, while enabling employees to receive guaranteed relief in the event that an injury at work prevents the employee from continuing to work.
In addition to serving as a form of disability insurance, workers' compensation also functions as a form of life insurance that provides dependents of an employee who is killed during the course of employment with benefits that are based upon the employee's average weekly wages for a specified period of time.
If you have been injured in the course of employment, contact our workers' compensation lawyers, who are licensed in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. It is essential that you consult with an attorney to discuss whether a workers' compensation claim is appropriate in your case, and if it is, how to pursue it in the most effective manner.
Our lawyers also handle personal injury cases, which are injuries sustained by individuals due to the negligence of others Such cases include motor vehicle accidents, dog bites, premises liability, slip trip fall accidents, truck accidents, bicycle accidents, assault and defamation cases.