Experience ● Commitment ● Integrity

Workers' Compensation Claims our firm most frequently handles are:

• First Responder Injuries
• Workplace Accidents

First Responder Injuries

If you are injured at work or develop a condition or disease over time because of the kind of work you do, then you may be covered for treatment, lost wages and permanent damage, so you should see an attorney with strong experience and credentials in Workers’ Compensation Law.

Almost all employers, by law, must provide workers’ compensation benefits free of charge to their employees. The Workers' Compensation Act was designed as financial protection for workers who are unable to perform their duties due to an on-the-job injury. It covers injuries that occur in the course and scope of employment, including repetitive traumas like carpal tunnel syndrome or hypertension for first responders. It does not matter who was at fault for the injury.

It is important to realize that by retaining an attorney, you are not suing your employer. In fact, according to the Workers’ Compensation Act, no injured employee can sue his or her employer for workplace injuries. The claim is filed against the insurance company only. It is also important to know that you cannot be fired for filing a workers’ compensation claim. Section 4 of the Workers’ Compensation Act makes this very clear. Any subsequent breach of Section 4 will provide grounds for the employee to move forward and file a lawsuit against their former employer.

Despite the apparent simplicity of workers’ compensation rules, first attempts to get benefits are often turned down. The insurance companies have attorneys whose job is to minimize the amount of benefits you receive. Not every work injury will result in a permanent impairment. Permanent impairment ratings are based on the anatomical change to the body caused by the injury. If your body heals completely without permanent change, then you may not receive an impairment rating.

Workers' compensation claims, in part, are based on the impairment rating assigned by the treating physician or an independent examiner. It is important that you retain a qualified workers’ compensation lawyer before contacting your workers’ compensation insurance company. Anything you say to the insurance company can and will be used to delay, reduce, or eliminate your benefits.

At Coker, Schickel, Sorenson & Posgay we have decades of experience and a strong record of results in assisting victims of claim denial. We help you get the benefits you need and deserve. Senior Partner, Jake Schickel is board certified by The Florida Bar as a specialist in Workers’ Compensation law. Mr. Schickel’s practice has a strong focus on helping first responders, including fire fighters and police, to obtain the benefits they deserve. Mr. Schickel represents only the petitioners in this type of case and does not represent insurance companies or employers. Mr. Schickel also represents individuals whose have been injured in workplace accidents.

Attorneys at Coker, Schickel, Sorenson & Posgay are experienced trial attorneys. When negotiations to obtain benefits for injured workers do not succeed, Mr. Schickel takes cases to trial to get the results deserved. He has successfully assisted scores of first responders in their workers’ compensation claims; most of his cases come as referrals from those clients.

Some Information That May Be Helpful

In your workers' compensation claim, you are entitled to receive payment for travel to and from your doctor appointments.

Workers’ compensation law requires employers to provide medical treatment for injuries incurred on the job regardless of whose fault the injury is. As a trade-off, the injured employee loses the right to sue for pain and suffering, if the injury is compensable under workers' compensation. This is known as the “exclusive remedy” provision. You should be given a list of three doctors to choose one for treatment.

If you miss more than 7 days of work, you are eligible to receive payment for your lost time from work at the rate of two-thirds of your 13-week average weekly wage. This is known as your compensation rate. You are paid for the first 7 days after you miss 14 days. The compensation rate amounts are capped for high-income employees. We frequently assist our clients when they are having problems receiving their checks.

When you are released by the treating doctor, you are at Maximum Medical Improvement (MMI). At that time, the doctor will assess the anatomical change to your body caused by the injury and assign you an Impairment Rating. You have the right to have your own doctor assign an impairment rating as well. This is called an Independent Medical Exam (IME).

The lump sum settlement that some workers get at the end of a workers’ compensation claim is based upon their Impairment Rating and their compensation rate.

Workplace Accidents

If you are unfortunate enough to be involved in an accident at work, which was not your fault and you suffer from a workplace injury, you may be able to make a personal injury claim for compensation.

If you are injured at work, in most cases you are entitled to workers’ compensation. The type of compensation you are entitled to will depend on the nature of your injury, and whether you are covered under workers' compensation.

As with all accident compensation claims, it will be necessary to prove that your injury, illness or disease was caused by the negligence of another party. It is important to consult with an experienced personal injury law firm who will conduct an investigation, compile evidence to support your claim and present it to third party insurers.

Every personal injury claim is very different and while some are settled within a matter of months, others can take years. Most claims for workplace accidents and workplace injuries are settled out of Court; however, some will need to go trial in order for you to receive fair compensation.

For over 30 years the trial attorneys at Coker, Schickel, Sorenson & Posgay have successfully handled claims for serious personal injury and built a strong record of success in getting clients the compensation they need and deserve. In some cases this in the form of a fair settlement. When this option does not succeed, we then activate our well-known reputation and skills for taking cases to Court. The combined experience, commitment and resources of the firm are all vigorously applied at trial to obtain results that are favorable to our client. Our attorneys have successfully dealt with a wide range of workplace accident and workplace injury claims ranging from lacerations, burns and soft tissue damage to catastrophic injuries such as brain injuries or spinal injuries and even fatal injuries.

Steps To Take If You Have Been Injured In A Workplace Accident

1. Find out if your employer is required to have worker's compensation insurance. In most states, almost all employers are. This means if you work for someone who has 4 or more employees (and you are not an independent contractor), you will get your work injury compensation through the worker's compensation system.
2. Make sure your injury is covered by workers' compensation. If you were injured in the course of your employment while doing something job related you are entitled to work injury compensation. This is true in some cases even if you weren't physically at the office, as long as you were somewhere you were supposed to be. It's also true if you were injured because you were negligent, as long as you didn't so something on purpose to get hurt and you weren't intoxicated or on drugs. Negligence does not preclude a work injury claim, and your employer did not have to do something negligent in order for you to be entitled to work injury compensation.
3. Follow all the required steps for a work accident claim. This means you must notify your employer or your injury and your intent to seek work injury compensation as soon as you can after your injury. This also means going to a doctor, sometimes even one recommended by your employer. You must do all these steps in order to file a work accident claim and get work injury compensation. If you fail to inform your employer or go to a doctor, you may lose your right to file a work accident claim and be unable to get work injury compensation.

To view representative Workers’ Compensations cases our firm has handled, please click here.