Legal Question in Workers Comp in California

Before the legislature enacted the Workers' Comp statutes, an employee had to sue the employer in tort. The litigation was very expensive, and employees often lost. In other words, they received nothing for being injured at work in circumstances where they did something foolish, like jumping over a fence. Now an employee is precluded from suing the employer in tort, in other words no expensive law suits. However, the statutory construction of the law prevents an employee from suing an employer even when the employer does something very wrong. Your friend should be aware that big paydays are rare in industrial injuries. 100% disabilities are fought strenously by the defense carriers because a 99% injury is hugely different than a 100% injury in terms of payout, hundreds of thousands of dollars different. The same statutes that did away with lawsuits against the employer limited the recovery. Your friend will endure some quite painful surgeries, then will find out that lower extremity injuries may not mean he cannot work. In sum, the payday may not be worth the pain and suffering he will experience due to the injury. There is no recovery for pain and suffering in workers comp. He will never be able to play a sport, probably will have trouble dating, and will be sporatically employed for the rest of his life. Frankly, his payday will not cover anything close to the impact his injury will have on his life..

California worker's compensation laws are in reality a no fault system. Neither employer nor employee have to prove the fault of another in order to prevail, What matters is if injuries are work-related . In some cases when employee is grossly at fault i.e. get injured at work while intoxicated the settlement amount is reduced by certain percentage normally by 15%. Feel free to call us at 213.388.7070 for a free consultation.