Augusta Workers’ Compensation Lawyer

Whether you were injured on a construction site or while working in an office, you may have injuries that demand medical care or put you out of commission for weeks. In those situations, it’s helpful to have a legal advocate by your side.

An Augusta workers’ compensation attorney at The Hawk Firm can work with you to ensure you receive the full benefits of workers’ compensation. Reach out to us today for a free consultation where we can discuss your on-the-job injury and your rights as an employee in the state.

Table of Contents

• You Can Have The Hawk Firm Advantage in Your Workers’ Comp Case
• Our Initial Consultation Gives You Insight on Your Workers’ Comp Claim
• Our Augusta Workers’ Compensation Lawyers Fight for all Your Benefits
• Filing a Third-Party Lawsuit to Recover Damages After a Workplace Accident
• Can You Get Workers’ Comp Coverage for Any On-the-Job Injury?

You Can Have The Hawk Firm Advantage in Your Workers’ Comp Case

At The Hawk Firm, our trial attorneys fight aggressively for injury victims and treat every client like family. We can handle your case personally, unlike some larger-scale firms. So, you can walk through the door, shake your attorney’s hand, and know that the lawyer who takes your case can stand with you throughout the entire process of your claim.

A Dedicated Legal Team With Years of Experience

Our lawyers know how to handle all workers’ compensation claims. Our team can work closely with you to handle your case with care and within the appropriate amount of time. In addition, we have years of experience and extensive knowledge of the applicable laws in our state.

Access to Your Lawyers

Our legal team remains in close contact with you throughout your claims process. We provide direct access to your workers’ comp attorney and consistent updates on your progress. Our attorneys and legal support staff want to assist you however we can. If you have questions, you can expect prompt replies to your calls and emails.

Transparency and Trusted Solutions

Our law firm aims to lead with transparency. We make it a point to explain your rights, what to expect in your case, the available options, and possible outcomes to your claim. Moreover, you can always expect to receive honest and thoughtful answers to your questions. Clients trust us because we openly share our wisdom so you can make smart decisions regarding your case. We pride ourselves on providing solutions based on what’s best for you.

Compassion For Every Client

Every workers’ compensation client that seeks our help battles an injury they didn’t expect. Some of them suffer from no fault of their own, and many don’t know how to handle it alone. When you’re hurting physically and unable to work to your full capacity, our Augusta workers’ compensation lawyers understand how much you need financial relief to ease the burdens. We fight diligently for the best outcome in your claim because we know how much your world depends on it.

Affording an Augusta Workers’ Compensation Lawyer

We don’t charge our clients upfront. Our workers’ comp attorneys in Augusta take cases based on a contingency fee. We only get paid if they recover compensation for you. We receive our legal fees from a portion of the workers’ compensation claim settlement.

We can discuss our payment arrangement during your free consultation. You can ask any questions and trust that we can provide full transparency on how our fees work. Rest assured that you can walk away with the bulk of your settlement or benefits the way you deserve.

Our Augusta Workers’ Compensation Lawyers Fight for all Your Benefits

If you work for a company with three or more employees, your employer must maintain workers’ compensation insurance under state law. Workers’ comp covers medical expenses, rehabilitation costs, income loss, and survivor’s financial support. You can review your additional rights and responsibilities in the state’s Workers’ Compensation Employee Handbook.

If you suffered on-the-job injuries, our Augusta workers’ comp attorneys can dedicate themselves to fighting for every dollar of compensation and the additional benefits you deserve.

Medical Benefits

Workers’ compensation pays for your medical expenses, provided eligible healthcare practitioners give your care. Your employer generally gets to choose a list of medical care providers that you can select from. You must choose your doctor from the list unless you receive an exception granted by the State Board of Workers’ Compensation or if the employer fails to provide such a list. If you have an emergency, you can receive medical attention from any practitioner but must resume seeing your selected provider once the emergency passes.

The medical costs covered under your workers’ comp benefits include:

• Doctor visits
• Hospital stays
• Physical rehabilitation
• Medication
• Necessary travel expenses

For most injuries, you can get your medical bills covered for up to 400 weeks. If there is a catastrophic injury or you have an injury that occurred before July 2013, you can receive medical benefits for life.

Vocational Rehabilitation

Those who suffer injuries on the job may struggle to return to work at their previous capacity. In some cases, they simply cannot do so. For example, suffering a traumatic brain injury, nerve damage, or the loss of a limb can make working difficult.

In those times, workers’ compensation could pay for vocational rehabilitation. This type of rehabilitation provides training and services to help injured workers battling psychological, physical, emotional, or cognitive impairments to access employment opportunities, maintain their jobs, or return to work.

Income Loss

Our workers’ compensation attorneys in Augusta can help you start collecting weekly income benefits if you cannot work for at least eight days. State law stipulates that benefits begin within 21 days of missing work. Your payments would cover two-thirds of your weekly earnings.

Income loss benefits can last up to 400 weeks for most injuries as long as you cannot work. Those who suffer catastrophic injuries could get lifetime income loss payments. If you can return to work with reduced ability, you can receive weekly payments for up to 350 weeks.

You could receive additional income benefits if you lost the use of a body part, your sight or your hearing, or suffered another permanent disability.

Survivor Benefits for Dependents

The surviving family members of a worker who passed away due to job-related injuries could receive income benefits. Family members, such as children, spouses, or step-children, must be dependents. These loved ones could get two-thirds of the weekly income.

Does Workers’ Compensation Pay for Pain and Suffering?

Workers’ compensation aims to ensure you receive adequate medical treatment and financial support while you recover from your job-related injuries. This will not necessarily compensate you for all your accident-related damages, however. Given this, workers’ comp does not pay for pain and suffering.

Therefore, if you experience debilitating physical pain or emotional distress, such as depression or diminished quality of life, you would have to seek financial recovery through a personal injury lawsuit. You could do so if someone other than your employer bears responsibility for your injury.

Can I Sue My Employer for a Workplace Injury in Augusta?

Employees cannot sue their employers in our state under most circumstances. Because claimants can receive workers’ compensation insurance regardless of who caused the accident, the state does not allow you to file a lawsuit against your employer. It offers a mutually beneficial system where employers are indemnified against fault, and workers get coverage no matter who bears fault. An employer will not bear liability except to pay appropriate workers’ compensation benefits.

Some clear exceptions to this rule exist:

• The employer hurt you intentionally: Employers who intentionally inflict injury on an employee could face a personal injury lawsuit and/or criminal charges.
• The employer does not have workers’ comp insurance: Employers who don’t have or fail to maintain workers’ compensation insurance could bear liability in a court of law. Employees could seek a recovery of medical expenses, lost income, pain and suffering, and other accident-related expenses through a lawsuit.

Filing a Third-Party Lawsuit to Recover Damages After a Workplace Accident

You can pursue damages in a third-party claim if your workplace accident in Augusta resulted from negligence by any individual or company who is not your employer or coworker. Faulty machinery, defective equipment, and inept service providers that contribute to your injuries could allow you to sue for negligence.

An Augusta workers’ compensation lawyer at our firm can investigate the circumstances of your injury to determine if any third parties played a role. The potentially liable parties will vary depending on your field of work and the specifics of the accident.

Important Deadlines in an Augusta Workers’ Compensation Claim

While you could deserve workers’ comp, you must meet legal deadlines to receive the benefits.

Notifying Your Employer of the Injury

State law gives you 30 days to report your accident or injury to your employer. Unless you have a valid exception, failure to notify your job of the injury could mean losing your right to workers’ compensation benefits.

Filing a Workers’ Compensation Claim

Once you report your injury to your employer, you must file your claim promptly. The state gives you a year from the date of your last authorized medical treatment to file your workers’ compensation claim.

Our workers’ comp attorneys serving Augusta can ensure you file your claim before your deadline expires, but you need to act quickly. If you know you’ve been injured in a workplace accident or due to your duties on the job, you should contact our firm immediately so we can start gathering the facts and building your claim.

Our workers’ comp insurance lawyers can take the burden of filing a claim off your shoulders so you can focus on recovering.

We can handle the entire claim from start to finish, including:

• Investigating the manner of accident or injury and gathering evidence to definitively prove it was related to work
• Compiling proof of your injuries, medical costs, and additional covered expenses, such as travel
• Helping you secure proper medical treatment, tracking your appointments, and obtaining medical records and doctors’ reports
• Ensuring you get appropriate lost income and disability benefits and that you have coverage for your medical expenses
• Communicate with your employer, their insurance company, and other parties to keep your case moving forward
• Negotiating a fair claim settlement after you’ve reached maximum improvement to close your case

Can You Get Workers’ Comp Coverage for Any On-the-Job Injury?

An on-the-job or workplace injury arises in the course of your work duties. These injuries must have occurred during your work hours while performing tasks related to your job. State law generally limits workers’ comp benefits to discernible physical injuries or illnesses. A lawyer on our team can explain the applicable laws regarding workers’ comp claims if you don’t know whether your injury qualifies.

Typically, your injury must consist of one of the following:

• A sudden physical trauma
• Gradual physical trauma
• Illness
• Death

Further, you may not get coverage if the injury occurred at work but was unrelated to the job. The same holds true if you were harmed while on a lunch break or performing unassigned duties.

Additionally, you cannot get workers’ compensation if you were hurt while willfully engaging in misconduct or under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

The Hawk Firm Works Hard for Injured Workers in Augusta

The Hawk Firm aims to help injured workers recover their workers’ compensation benefits under the law. The stress of being out of work and battling injuries can make it extremely challenging to file a claim on your own. Let an Augusta personal injury lawyer at our firm help you get it done. Jacque, Erin, and everyone else at our firm will handle your claim with care. Call us today for a free consultation: (706) 429-5529.