Not every work injury happens in an instant. A warehouse worker who develops severe lung problems after years of breathing in dust, a nurse who contracts an infectious disease on the job, or a factory employee who loses hearing after a decade next to loud machinery...
If your workers' compensation case is heading to a hearing, you are probably feeling some anxiety about what that actually means. Many injured workers picture a dramatic courtroom showdown like the ones on television. The reality is far less theatrical, but it is...
When your Illinois workers' compensation case is finally ready to settle, you may be picturing a single lump sum that closes the book on your injury. For many injured workers, that is exactly how it works. But if you are already enrolled in Medicare, or you are likely...
You settled your workers’ compensation case, or an arbitrator issued an award, and you tried to move on. Months later, the pain returns, the surgery you hoped you would never need is now on the table, and the disability you were compensated for has clearly...
If your work injury has left you with permanent restrictions and your doctor has told you that you cannot return to the job you held before you were hurt, you are likely facing a frightening question: how will you support yourself and your family now? Illinois law...
Two Claims, Two Different Recoveries Workers’ compensation is a no-fault system. You do not need to prove that anyone did anything wrong; you only need to show that you were injured at work and that the injury arose out of and in the course of your employment....
If your job regularly takes you away from a single fixed workplace — whether you are a sales representative driving between client sites, a service technician dispatched to different locations, a construction worker sent out of town for a project, or a delivery...
If you have ever been told by an insurance adjuster that your work injury “is not really work-related” because you had a pre-existing condition, you are not alone. Denials based on degenerative changes, prior injuries, or asymptomatic conditions found on...
If you have been injured at work in Illinois and are approaching the end of your medical treatment, you have probably heard the term “permanent partial disability” or “PPD.” Many injured workers assume that once they finish treatment and return...
If you have been treating for a work injury for months, there may come a day when your doctor writes two words in your chart that change the direction of your entire case: maximum medical improvement. It is often abbreviated MMI, and it is one of the most important...