Holiday FL Personal Injury Lawyer

Injured workers and disabled individuals need and deserve financial benefits.

People in this quiet seaside community appreciate strong values, like hard work, commitment to family, and honesty. The diligent Holiday personal injury lawyers at the Rooth Law Firm share these values.

We work hard every day to build a strong, evidence-based case that clearly establishes your claim and is strong enough to refute any possible defenses. We also treat our clients like family. We give all our clients the dignity and respect they deserve. Additionally, we proactively communicate with them throughout the process, so they’re never in the dark.

To us, honesty means accurately assessing your claim and carefully informing you of your legal options, in language you can understand. We set out all the pros and cons, so you can make the best possible choices for you and your family.

This simple and straightforward approach has enabled us to obtain life-changing results for our clients in the past. We’re confident this approach will produce the same results in your case.

Workers’ Compensation

Following a job injury, everyone ultimately wants the same thing, which is for injured workers to get back on the job as soon as possible. Workers’ compensation benefits clearly further that goal. These benefits include:

• Lost Wage Replacement: Most victims are entitled to two-thirds of their average weekly wage for the duration of their temporary or permanent disabilities. A proper AWW calculation is based on not only prior wages, but also future wages, such as missed performance bonus milestones and overtime opportunities.
• Medical Bill Payment: Workers’ compensation insurance companies must pay all reasonably necessary medical bills. This category includes not only direct costs, such as treatment and physical therapy expenses but also indirect costs, like transportation and medical devices.

Usually, the process begins with a Claims Examiner review. Since the Claims Examiner only reviews the paperwork in the file, and a Holiday personal injury lawyer is not involved in this part of the process, Claims Examiners almost always deny claims.

Therefore, most workers’ compensation claims move to the next level, which is an Administrative Law Judge appeal hearing. ALJ hearings resemble trials in most respects. Attorneys can make arguments, challenge evidence, and introduce evidence.

This evidence often includes the results of an independent medical examination. In Florida, most injured workers cannot choose their own doctors. IME physicians usually reach evidence conclusions that are much different from the often-unsupported opinions of company doctors.

Social Security Disability Basics

Similar benefits are available through the Social Security system if the applicant has a permanent, disabling medical condition. According to the SSA, a medical condition is disabling if the applicant:

• Does not earn more than $1,550 per month, as of January 1, 2024 (some exceptions apply),
• Has a “severe” condition that substantially limits a work-related activity, like standing, sitting, or concentrating, on an everyday basis,
• Has a listed condition, or a condition that’s substantially similar to a listed condition,
• Cannot do the work s/he did previously, and
• Is unable to perform any other SGA job.

SGA, or Substantial Gainful Activity, is any job that requires significant mental and/or physical activity and, in most cases, pays enough to lift the applicant, and any dependents, above the poverty line.

Attorneys usually partner with independent doctors who, in many cases, are more well-suited to address medical issues than the doctor the SSA randomly assigns to a case. Attorneys usually work with vocational experts in the other areas. A vocational expert assesses the applicant’s chances of getting a good job given not only the applicant’s medical background, but also the applicant’s other background.

Count on a Holiday FL Personal Injury Lawyer

Victims need and deserve compensation for their injuries. For a free consultation with a Board Certified workers’ compensation lawyer in Holiday, contact the Rooth Law Firm. Virtual, home, and hospital visits are available.