Workers’ Compensation Attorneys in San Diego & Solana Beach

ARENDSEN BRADDOCK LAW | EXPERIENCE MATTERS

If you’ve been injured on the job and haven’t received workers’ compensation, contact the lawyers at Arendsen Braddock Law to help. Our team offers a skilled set of attorneys who specialize in injury cases, including fighting for your right to compensation after a work-related injury. But what is workers’ comp? Workers’ compensation is a no-fault system that injured employees can turn to if they’ve been hurt in the workplace. Unlike other injury cases, and because workers’ comp insurance is required of your employer by law in California, victims do not need to prove liability of another party to recover workers’ comp benefits.

In-Depth Look at Workers’ Comp

Workers’ compensation is meant to protect both the employee and the employer. Why? Because employees have the right to be paid while they recover from injury and because employees cannot sue an employer who complies with workers’ comp. Though employees cannot sue their employer after a work injury, employees still have a right to sue liable parties in a couple instances:

• Intentional Harm & Gross Negligence: If an injured employee can prove that their harm was caused by an employer’s purposeful action or severe negligence in which injury was a result, an additional lawsuit to collecting workers’ comp can be just. Gross negligence can be seen in different ways, so it’s important to inform your lawyer, take photos of the scene of the injury, and keep a paper trail of negligent operations in the workplace if you sue for intentional harm or negligence.
  
  
• Third-Party Liability: While employers are exempt from lawsuits (except in the case of intentional harm), employees can sue third parties that contributed to a workplace injury. Third-party injury is common in the field of construction or other trades because of the multiple businesses it takes to build and formalize a structure, roadway, etc. Essentially, having multiple hands in the pot is a case for third-party injury claims.

California Workers’ Comp Laws

If you are an employee that has been injured on a job, you must file a workers’ comp claim form immediately upon injury to receive workers’ comp benefits. It may seem like a long time, but the statute of limitations for a California workers’ compensation claim is only one year from the date of your accident.

Aside from the statute of limitations, California recently updated their workers’ comp laws in 2020. As of January 2020, workers will be classified into employees or independent contractors. The law assumes that all workers are employees and adopts an “ABC Test” to bucket an employee from an independent contractor. Under the “ABC Test”, a worker is considered an employee UNLESS the hiring agent satisfies all three of the following:

• The worker is free from control of the hiring entity.

• The worker performs work that is outside the hiring entity’s business.

• The worker is engaged in an independent trade or business of the same nature as that involved in the work performed for the hiring entity.



• Additionally, rates for workers’ comp have increased in 2020. Now, the maximum TTD benefit will increase to $1,299.43 with the minimum increasing to $194.91 per week.

Contact Arendsen Braddock Law

Do you have a workers’ compensation case? Contact our team in San Diego and Solana Beach, CA. We offer free first consultations to make sure your case is valid and can be upheld in court. Get in touch with our workers’ compensation attorneys today!