Worker Compensation

YB, a 30-year carpenter at a lumber yard, reinjured his lumbar spine while lifting a 50-pound bucket filled with cement. He had initially injured his back in 2003, resulting in an L5-S1 microdiscectomy for sciatica. A year later after the February occurrence, he underwent another surgery, this time decompression of the right sciatic nerve at the piriformis fossa, a somewhat unusual procedure. The surgery was only partially successful, and his surgeon placed him on a permanent 30-pound lifting restriction, which the lumber yard refused to accommodate. Lipkin & Apter hired a vocational counselor to determine whether there was actual employment for YB given than he had worked his entire adult life for the lumber yard. The counselor's conclusion: there was no stable job market available for YB. The Workers’ Compensation insurer retained its vocational counselor, who concluded that there were numerous jobs available to YB. In the end, rather than proceed to trial, the Workers’ Compensation insurer agreed to settle YB’s claim for $273,000. Under the law, an injured worker may receive both Workers’ Compensation and Social Security Disability Income Benefits.

Here's the top 3 resources for workers' compensation cases to help you gain a better understanding about what to expect throughout the entire process.

While industrial workers may be more likely to sustain an injury, office workers are in no way immune to workplace injuries. Learn more from the attorneys at Lipkin & Apter.

C.M., a long-time building engineer at a Condominium high-rise, injured his rotator cuff and biceps tendon pushing a heavy garbage bin up a ramp. He was diagnosed with a torn rotator cuff and biceps tendonitis. C.M. went through the full gamut of conservative medical treatment, before undergoing surgery 3 months post-accident. He was off work nearly a year, before returning to his job. At the end of his treatment, we were able to negotiate a settlement of C.M.’s permanent partial disability benefits of $63,000.

The Workers’ Compensation attorneys at Lipkin & Apter were contacted by Z.N., a seventy (70) year old, forty-one (41) year veteran flight attendant for United Airlines who severely injured her ankle in a fall in 2010 while on a layover in Frankfurt, Germany. Z.N. was a permanent resident of the State of Washington at the time of the accident. United paid Z.N.’s Temporary Total Disability and medical benefits under Illinois law even though she never set foot in Illinois. In all, Temporary Total Disability benefits were paid for five (5) years-through the middle of 2015. During that time, Z.N. underwent a total of three (3) ankle surgeries and United paid 100% of all medical bills for Z.N.’s treatment. Following an examination by an Independent Medical Examiner (ie. a doctor selected by the worker's compensation insurance carrier) and a successful negotiation, we resolved Z.N.’s claim for a 70% loss to Person as a Whole, or approximately $186,000.00.

The workers compensation attorneys at Lipkin & Apter have established a few rules to follow when it comes to legally maintaining your right to workmans comp benefits. Learn more in their latest Blog post!

To help you separate myths surrounding workers compensation and the facts that contravene them, the attorneys at Lipkin & Apter have highlighted some of the most frequently-recurring erroneous claims and invalidated them.

Understanding your workers compensation rights as an Illinois resident will give you a better idea of what you can do to protect yourself and gain deserved benefits and compensation.

Post-Traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can arise from a number of different workplace situations. Learn what you need to know about PTSD workers compensation cases from the attorneys at Lipkin & Apter.

The Chicago Workers' Compensation attorneys at Lipkin & Apter were contacted by TK, a 40-year-old pipe manufacturer who came to us with a history of Achilles (heel) tendon soreness in both feet. TK alleged that he aggravated his left Achilles tendon condition due to repetitive walking, climbing, and lifting at work and required surgery. Shortly after the surgery, TK became unable to work and was deemed by his doctors to be permanently disabled from work. Moreover, TK's employer denied TK's Workers' Compensation claims that his repetitive trauma injuries were caused or contributed to by his job. TK's employer refused to pay TK any Workers' Compensation benefits, his time off of work, medical expenses or his injuries, and the case went to trial. The testimony of TK's treating physicians proved compelling, and we successfully obtained a verdict in TK's favor. Finally, after seven (7) years of litigation, TK received the compensation to which he was deserving-back pay of TTD beginning with the date of injury, medical expenses of $171,000 and permanent disability paying $664.20 weekly for life. Besides, we were able to obtain nearly all of TK's life expectancy in a lump sum settlement amounting to $891,750, which will allow TK to live with a measure of economic security.