Most settlements are obtained through the following methods: normal settlement discussions among the parties; through a mandatory settlement conference at the Minnesota Office of Administrative Hearings; or mediation with the assistance of a privately hired mediator, MN Department of Labor and Industry mediator or on the rare occasion with and Administrative Law Judge at OAH (Office of Administrative Hearings).

If the parties are unsuccessful the case usually proceeds directly to a hearing within 60-90 days.  If a workers’ compensation settlement is reached then settlement papers are drafted, the parties (including you the employee and your attorney) sign the settlement papers and then the agreement is forwarded to an OAH Administratie Law Judge for review and issuance of an Award on Stipulation.  Payment under the settlement must be MAILED 14 calendar days following the settlement.

If you are not represented by an attorney it is very likely that signing an agreement on your own is an enormous mistake.  I don’t say this because I or any other attorney wants to take your money.  You are giving up rights that you don’t fully understand.  More importantly I have ALWAYS been able to obtain more money for my clients than they were offered before being retained.

I encourage you to contact Atkinson Law Office and Minnesota Disability today to discuss how we can assist you.  tom@mindisability.com or call 651-414-0678.

In looking for a lawyer look to see if they have been reprimanded or suspended in the past.  Does the lawyer limit their practice to work comp and disability claims or do they handle every conceivable type of injury claim such as dog bites, car accidents, slip and falls, medical malpractice, etc.  It is difficult for most attorneys to master a single area of law as well as we have at Minnesota Disability, let alone dozens of areas of the law.  Our attorneys and staff are recognized by our peers with numerous awards including that of Superlawyer and Rising Stars by Minnesota Lawyer.  Attorney Tom Atkinson has lectured on workers compensation matters to other attorneys and judges and is willing to provide you with this same information in a free no obligation consultation.  Remember there is never a fee unless we recover benefits for you and even then, the fee is paid directly by the insurance company.  Contact our office at 651-332-8717 or 1-800-933-5619.  Our office represents clients throughout the entire state of Minnesota.

In the first two months of this year, Minnesota lost 24,000 jobs across a multitude of areas including professional, manufacturing and government. It is important to remember that a lay off does NOT relieve an employer’s obligation to continue providing ongoing workers compensation benefits to an injured worker. What many Minnesotans don’t realize is that aside from unemployment benefits, they may be entitled to substantial workers compensation benefits for ongoing workers compensation injuries. These benefits could include wage loss benefits AND retraining. Minnesota’s Workers’ Compensation law permits laid-off workers to receive wage loss benefits, if a work injury affects their ability to find employment after being laid off. This is often not a very difficult burden to establish given this down economy. Unfortunately, injured workers are sometimes the first employees laid off by an employer despite claims otherwise.

Who is qualified for rehabilitation benefits?

A “qualified employee” entitled to receive rehabilitation services. Minnesota Rule 5220.0100(22) defines “qualified employee” as: An employee who, because of the effects of a work-related injury or disease, whether or not combined with the effects of a prior injury or disability:

A. Is permanently precluded or is likely to be permanently precluded from engaging in the employee’s usual and customary occupation or from engaging in the job the individual held at the time of injury;

B. Cannot reasonably be expected to return to suitable gainful employment with the date-of-injury employer; and

C. Can reasonably be expected to return to suitable gainful employment through the provision of rehabilitation services considering the treating physician’s opinion of the employee’s work ability!
I’ve been laid off, now what do I do?

First, file for unemployment IMMEDIATELY. If you are not receiving workers compensation benefits at the time of layoff or are unsure about your eligibility, I encourage you to apply for unemployment. If you are later found eligible for unemployment, your receipt of workers’ compensation benefits will offset your unemployment benefit. Unlike unemployment, however, your workers compensation wage loss benefits are generally TAX FREE. You can apply online or by telephone by contacting the State of Minnesota through their web site www.uimn.org/ui/

Next contact our office and we will assist you in obtaining a copy of your employment and workers compensation files. With nearly two decades of experience handling cases involving injured worker, Thomas Atkinson and MN Disability can help explain whether your old or current injuries entitle you to rehabilitation benefits or a many other Minnesota Workers Compensation benefits. If you are found to be “qualified” you may be entitled to the assistance of a Qualified Rehabilitation Consultant who will act on YOUR behalf to help you find a new job or seek retraining opportunities. Injured workers entitled to rehabilitation benefits are often entitled to full-time wage loss benefits in the form of temporary total disability as well. If you have already found a new part-time or full time job you may still be entitled to rehabilitation assistance and other wage replacement benefits such as temporary partial disability benefits.

Remember that a lay off does NOT relieve an employer’s obligation to continue providing ongoing workers’ compensation benefits to an injured worker. If you suffer from the effects of a current or old workers compensation injury, and you have been laid off, call attorney Tom Atkinson at MN Disability TODAY for a free consultation. With nearly two decades of experience practicing in ONLY workers compensation, we know how to navigate the work comp maze. We have evening and weekend appointments open throughout Minnesota. tom@mndisability.com or 651-324-9514.

Let me give you an example. One of my clients was forced to take his denied injury all the way to the Minnesota Supreme Court where his injury was found to be work related. This case is now very famous in Minnesota and you would think the insurance company would be careful to pay all benefits due on a timely basis.

After his former attorney retired I was asked to assist the client with a medical dispute. What I later found out is that many years earlier, the employee underwent surgery to his lumbar spine and bilateral shoulders resulting in a permanent condition necessitating twenty-four hour nursing services.

Despite the fact that he is now permanently and totally disabled after undergoing six surgeries to his shoulders and back for an ADMITTED injury, the insurer never paid ANY permanent partial disability. It was only in reviewing a medical dispute that I discovered this either intentional omission or negligent oversight. This is an error that could have saved the insurance company nearly $100,000.00 at the expense of my client! Having worked for over 15 years for an insurance companies I honestly don’t see how this was an oversight!

There are some very reputable insurance companies and adjusters in this business who will pay a compensable claim without prodding by an employee’s attorney’s like myself. However, there are others that believe in a “don’t ask don’t tell” policy. Don’t let yourself be a victim of a lazy adjuster or one practices “don’t ask don’t tell”!

I am happy to review your file to ensure that you are currently being paid every benefit you are entitled to under Minnesota’s Workers Compensation Laws. There is NO FEE for me to review your claim, contact the insurance adjuster and ensure you are receiving the proper the benefits. You will NEVER pay me a retainer or write an attorney fee check to my office. Work comp attorneys are only paid when we assist the injured worker in getting his/her benefits. In some cases the fees are paid entirely by the insurance company who took a gamble in not paying you the benefits you are entitled. Contact attorney Thomas Atkinson and Minnesota Disability today to discuss your case at 651-324-9514 or tom@mndsiability.com

A work injury can be of three types, Gillette, Specific or Occupational Disease. I go three these types of injury in my blog in more detail but to review a Gillette injury occurs over weeks, months or even years until you are eventually disabled; a specific injury are injuries that occur instantly like dropping a hammer on your toe; occupational injuries are often the most complex and can be either specific or Gillette in nature and are usually due to exposures of chemicals or diseases in the work place.

ALL of these dates have exceptions that allow you to provide Notice AFTER 180 days following the development of symptoms. The date of injury is not a straightforward black and white issue. There are thousands of cases dealing with the issue of “culmination of injury”. The Court will typically look for a way to allow a compensable injury as long as you provided reasonable notice of your injury. There are exceptions for occupational diseases or trivial injuries where you may suspect work contributed to the injury but you aren’t sure and your doctor hasn’t definitively linked the injury to work activities. It is important to keep in mind that a physicians job is to assist you in treating your injury and whether it is work related or not is often far down on his/her list of important questions to ask during your brief encounters.

If you believe you may have sustained a work related injury OR your work activities have substantially aggravated a non-work related disability or medical condition you may be entitled to workers compensation benefits. Don’t come to that decision alone. Talk with an attorney whose practice is LIMITED to workers compensation and representing injured or disabled workers. At Minnesota Disability and Atkinson Law Offices I get calls every week from general personal injury attorneys asking questions about Minnesota Workers Compensation Rules. If a personal injury attorney doesn’t have an answer, you shouldn’t expect yourself to have the answer either.

I never charge a fee unless I recover a benefit on your behalf AND even then the fee is paid directly by the insurance company and not you! You will NEVER pay a retainer or fee directly to me for representing you! Call me at 651-324-9514 or email me at tom@mndisability.com.

As a former insurance company attorney I have schedule hundreds of “independent medical examinations” for injured workers. The term independent medical examination is not always accurate. Though there are many reputable doctors who will perform a thorough examination and may on occasion write a neutral report, they understand that the insurance company and defense attorney are the referral source to future business. If they disappoint them too often they are blacklisted and I have seen it happen!!! Many defense attorneys believe it’s their job to chose a ” doctors who will do and say almost anything” to help them win!

When I worked as a defense attorney I thought having a neutral independent doctor was truly important. It helped me assess and fully understand the injured worker’s claim. By choosing a neutral physician I also hoped my client would have credibility before the compensation judge should we go to hearing. Later in my career as a defense attorney I began to get flack from a kool-aide drinking “old time” defense lawyer who chastised me for choosing these independent physicians and telling me I needed to get on board and work with the “adverse examiners”. Despite the fact that this attorney had only gone to a full hearing a handful of times in the past decade, he was going to try his hardest to win a case at almost any cost and thought I should too! This didn’t sit well with my years of experience and the reputation I developed. This was one of the reasons I now represent only injured workers and share these stories.

An employer and workers compensation insurer have the right to have you seen for an independent medical examination or adverse examination regardless of whether your claim is admitted or denied. They need to reimburse you for your expenses and must schedule it within 150 miles of your home. Keep in mind that this doctor is not nor will he ever be your treating physician. There is no doctor patient confidentiality, everything you tell the doctor will be shared with the employer and insurer. Sometimes the examinations last a few minutes and other times they can take close to an hour with an extensive physical examination and questions.

You will usually receive the report as an attachment to a service of Maximum Medical Improvement or a Notice of Intent to Discontinue Befits in the mail. As this is the goal of the adverse examination, your medical and/or wage loss benefits will likely be stopped as the result of your “independent medical examination”.

As a defense attorney I understand the flaws in these reports and the mistakes that can be made in preparation for the same. As your attorney I will surgically dissect these reports and the accompanying letters providing the physician with “foundation” or their opinion. My job is to look for contradictory medical evidence and obtain an opinion from your own treating physician and if necessary a truly independent doctor. If you would like to discuss your claim in more detail, feel free to contact me directly at 651-324-9514. All calls are usually returned within a few hours. Please understand that our conversation is FREE and if you retain me as your attorney there are no direct payments by you EVER. Our fees are paid directly by the insurance companies after obtaining benefits for you.

These are important facts to keep in mind:
1. Prescriptions and reimbursement for mileage to medical appointments are also payable;
2. The insurer may designate a pharmacy or pharmacies that you must use to obtain medicine for your injury, if the pharmacy is within 15 miles of your home;
3. You may choose your own health care provider under most circumstances; Be sure to advise you doctor or medical provider you are treating for a workers compensation injury and to be sure they sends all bills and supporting information to the insurer. The supporting information must explain how the treatments and charges relate to your work injury;
4. Your health care provider must notify the insurer before you have any surgery or hospitalizations, except in an emergency. You or the insurer may ask for a second opinion for any surgery that is not an emergency. The insurer must pay for the second opinion. You cannot be forced to have surgery if you do not want it;
5. Treatment by certain unlicensed complementary and alternative health care providers is not paid. This does NOT apply to chiropractic treatment. In Minnesota, the employer and insurer must provide up to 12 weeks of reasonable and necessary Chiropractic treatment.

What if my employer has a managed care plan?

Most employers do NOT participate in a workers’ compensation certified managed care plan. A certified managed care plan is an organization that has been certified by the state to manage health care for injured workers. Your employer must tell you if you are covered by a certified managed care plan. Some employers or insurers have contracted with a managed care plan or network of doctors who are not certified by the department. You are not required to receive treatment from a doctor in a plan or network that is not certified. If you are NOT required to participate in a managed care plan, you are strongly urged to obtain medical treatment with your regular doctor or clinic unless it is a medical emergency!
At MN Disability & Atkinson Law Offices representing injured and disabled workers is ALL we do. We don’t handle slips and falls, write wills or work on family law matters. We have chosen to focus on one area of the law for nearly two decades and that is why his peers have recognized Tom Atkinson as a Super Lawyer! www.mndisability.com You can also reach him directly by calling 651-324-9514.

When you receive a Notice of Intent to Discontinue Benefits (NOID), you should probably contact an attorney to simply have them review it to ensure you don’t have any defenses. At MN Disability, attorney Tom Atkinson will review your NOID for FREE! The Notice of Intent to Discontinue benefits should be sent to you by mail, along with any supporting documents with which they are relying to stop you benefit payments. The document must also state in clear and concise language the basis for which they intend to discontinue your wage loss benefits.

Insurers often attempt to discontinue temporary total and temporary partial disability benefits for a variety of reasons. The most usual reasons are: reaching Maximum Medical Improvement, your return to work at full or reduced wages, release from work restrictions, or failure to cooperate with rehabilitation efforts. As in the case with my client today, the insurance company’s basis to discontinue benefits was improper on its face. In this instance the medical information referenced in the NOID was not attached by the inexperienced out of state claims handler. This error was compounded by other errors that will allow for additional defenses in the future.

As with most employee’s, you will receive no warning of the receipt of Notice of Intent to Discontinue your benefits. You simply find a letter from your workers compensation insurer along with a two page NOID with a sentence or two attempting to explain why your benefits are terminated. You have a right to immediately object to discontinuance. Though there are some exceptions, if you are not represented, you should IMMEDIATELY call the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry at 1-800-342-5354 to object by telephone. Next, immediately contact an attorney to review the Notice of Intention to Discontinue benefits. If you do not prevail at the conference, it is a long road to appeal the decision and have the matter heard by a workers compensation judge. Though the time frame can vary, if you do not appeal the NOID within 12 days, you will need to retain an attorney to file an Objection to Discontinue benefits or file a Claim Petition.

Failure to object to a Notice of Intent to Discontinue Benefits can significantly delay your receipt of temporary total or temporary partial disability benefits. I strongly urge you take allow an attorney to provide a FREE review of your NOID to discuss options to the termination of you benefits. Attorney Tom Atkinson with MN Disability will directly take your call at 651-324-9514 EVERY DAY of the week. Don’t wait until Monday morning, call him today.

We are not a general practice law firm; we focus on representing individuals in Social Security Disability and Minnesota Workers Compensation matters. This focus means Minnesota Disability will provide you with dedicated and personal approach to your issues. Minnesota Disability provides better service than general law firms or non-attorney disability groups. We don’t draft a will in the morning and fight traffics ticket in the afternoon. We are licensed attorneys that do one thing; represent injured and disabled individuals. We know disability and we want to represent you.