subject: Earning Money Through Hard Work [print this page] Dealing in workers' compensation is the success story of a local attorney. He keeps his earnings a secret, but drives a $150,000 Rolls Royce and lives in a self owned apartment building.
His fees as a workers' compensation lawyer reveal this. In its two month investigation, the Associated Press and Better Government Assn.
chose at random two days in which arbitration hearings before the Illinois Industrial Commission in Springfield were to be held.
On those two days, he handled around 134 cases. His fees for handling 34 cases that originated on those days and were closed came to $19,238 94. A total of $17,619 55 was earned by a lawyer who represented in about 12 cases.
Attorneys' fees for workers' compensation has gone up in the last few years in the same manner as business costs and payouts of workers' compensation benefits.
Big earnings are made by lawyers who practice workers' compensation full time. There are some people who take care of heavy loads.
A fee of 20% can be charged by the lawyer for every settlement. Arbitration may not be necessary for most cases.
On the page of a local directory, one would see the one fourth page advertisement of a lawyer who wants people to know he can provide legal services for them.
His success is credited to the hard work he has exerted for 12 years. He talks to around 50 to 80 people.
According to him, there's nothing easy about the job. Around 20 of those people whom he talks to have families who are unable to eat.
I work hard because I am my own boss. He points out that somebody who works for the state or an insurance company may not do as much as he has been able to do, and that's a bit sad.
People have gone to me to ask whether lawyers who deal in workers' compensation are just fakes and cheaters. It's a very unintelligent approach to take. He explains that he is not a fraud.
Lawyers want the most for their clients, but they would also want to have something for themselves. Do you get paid too little, and if this is so, does this give you excuse to rip off companies, people ask.
I make it a point in my job to do what I can to help my clients and in doing so, get what I can. Sometimes, people would take an addition to what they should get.
A company must stick to its position.
There are companies who will wait a while before paying whatever expenses that is due an injured worker.
Other problems include getting the proper amount of permanent disability due a worker and getting him adequate medical treatment after injury.
A practical decision doctors often make is to treat the patient only after assurance of payment from the insurance company.
Unless they are assured that the medical treatment will be covered by the insurance company, some doctors don't give the treatment.
by: John Chambers
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