How are workers comp settlements determined?

I slipped and fell at work and broke my ankle. I had to have surgery to screw my tibia back together. The surgeon they gave me was certainly not my first pick, but I needed surgery immediately and they had already taken 6 days to get me in to surgery so I just took it and had the surgery done.

I have never had a post op problem (I had 5 previous unrelated surgeries) but this time I was in excruciating pain and was nauseous with a fever so I was in the hospital for 4 days. I now cannot drive or walk for 6 weeks. There is a very good chance that I will be unable to get a ride to my college and will have to take a semester off. The workers comp adjuster said that is personal and they cannot be responsible for it.

I have caused countless hours of pain and stress to my family. I am killing my back and knees crawling around because I can’t use my wheelchair around my house. The home aide they sent me wasn’t even CPR certified. She was a trainee, with no one there to train her.

I have offers from a bunch of lawyers to take my case. In California, didn’t the law change so you can’t sue for pain and suffering? How do I choose a lawyer? I guess they think I will be getting some sort of settlement, otherwise they wouldn’t want my case…

Related posts:

1. Will i receive a settlement award after my workman’s comp case closes in the state of California?
2. Fired for time off for surgery?
3. If my employer commits fraud will it hurt my workers comp?
4. what do workers comp payout settlemt for acl surgery for both knee?
5. Is it ok in the state of florida to fire someone who hired a attorney to handle a workers comp case?

This entry was posted on Sunday, November 29th, 2009 at 3:35 pm and is filed under Worker Q & A. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.