Chicago Workers’ Compensation & Occupational Diseases Attorneys
Respected & Experienced Representation of the Injured for over 50 years
The Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act serves to help the people of Illinois by providing compensation to those people who have been accidentally hurt, injured or have suffered death during employment in Ilinois. You can learn more here and here.
The Kosin Law Office Ltd. is a workers’ compensation and occupational diseases law firm. We have legal offices in downtown Chicago and LaGrange, Illinois to serve you. We handle cases throughout Chicagoland including Cook County and all the outlying counties, towns and areas – Will County, DuPage County, Kane County and Lake County.
The Kosin Law Office Ltd. is committed to personal attention and informed consultation. Once we begin handling your case, we are always available by phone or in person to answer your questions and to address your concerns so that our outcome thoroughly benefits your best interests.
Illinois Workers’ Compensation is governed by statute (written law) that provides benefits for individuals who sustain injuries arising out of, and in the course of their employment. It is meant to be a humane law to sustain the injured worker through their recovery and to provide benefits for any permanent disability caused by the injury. While it may seem simple, benefits under the Workers’ Compensation Act do not automatically flow from all injuries that happen “while at work”. The injury must “arise out of” and “in the course” of the employment. These legal principles apply to all Workers’ Compensation cases in Illinois and can be confusing to the public as well as to many attorneys not well versed in practicing before the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission.
On the other hand, many injuries that workers sustain may be caused by repetitive trauma over a period of time and not be directly traceable to a single event or injury. Repetitive trauma injuries are compensable under the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act. Other injuries, which may be an aggravation of a worker’s pre-existing condition, may also be compensable under the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act.
Other issues under the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act that may affect your case:
- Many benefits under the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act are related to your average weekly wage. Many times, insurers use a lower average weekly wage than the injured worker is entitled to. There may be times when the injured worker is working more than one job at the time of the injury and the employer is aware of the second job. Overtime is not included in the calculation of average weekly wage. But, if the injured worker worked overtime regularly in the period leading up to the date of injury, and that overtime was mandatory, then overtime hours can be added in to the average weekly wage determination.
- Injured workers are entitled to treatment by two physicians that the employer must pay for. However, there are many times when one treating physician will refer the injured worker to another physician due to their medical expertise. In these events, the referral from one doctor to another still counts as one physician (chain of referral).
- Often injuries can be severe enough that they prevent the injured employee from returning to their former employment. In those cases, the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act could provide benefits for vocational rehabilitation and for the injured worker’s inability to earn wages at his or her prior earning potential.
These are only a few of the many issues that may face an injured worker. The attorneys at the Kosin Law Office Ltd. have had decades of experience applying the intricacies of the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act for the benefit of injured workers. Fees under the Act are regulated by the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission and at the Kosin Law Office Ltd., all initial consultations are free.
Workers’ Compensation Overview
The Workers’ Compensation laws in Ilinois are intended to provide compensation to those people that have had accidental injuries, or have suffered death during the course of employment. We can help you understand how to file a claim, what the time limitations are to filing a claim, and what benefits you may be entitled to:
Types of Benefits
- Death Benefits for remaining family members
- Medical Benefits
- Permanent Partial Disability (PPD)
- Permanent Total Disability (PTD)
- Temporary Partial Disability (TPD)
- Temporary Total Disability Benefits
- Vocational Rehabilitation
What Employment, and What Injuries are Covered?
To understand this, we first need to understand the nature of your work injury, did the injury occur in course of your employment? These are legal terms, but they can make a difference in your compensation. For example, what if I am injured while I am taking my lunch break – am I covered? Generally speaking, if an employee never leaves the employer’s premises and the injury occurs during a lunch break on the premises, then you are covered. This injury may not have been caused due to the hazard or danger of the employment, but occurred in course of employment. As you can imagine there are many different scenarios and situations that occur whereby people get hurt at work. We need to understand ALL of the details and circumstances of your individual situation to give you the best advice and guidance.
What are My Medical Benefits?
In Illinois, the employer is required to pay the necessary medical expenses of the employee injured while working. In addtion, the employer must pay for all necessary first aid and emergency treatment that is needed as a result of the injury to the employee. We can help you understand what types of medical services are covered? Under the Workers’ Compensation Act, the treatment must be reasonable and necessary to cure the effects of a work related injury.
We can also help you understand:
- What are your choice of physician(s)?
- Can you be referred to a specialist?
- What are the duration of your medical benefits?
- How are medical services payments handled?
What are My Wage & Disability Benefits?
In Illinois, all wage loss benefits are calculated and determined by the average weekly wage.
We can also help you understand:
- What about overtime pay?
- What about bonuses?
- What if I am a part-time, or temporary employee?
Workers’ compensation law can be complex. We can help you understand many common questions.
- What are permanent disability benefits?
- Am I eligible for vocational rehabilitation?
- What are my rights to death benefits as a spouse or child of the deceased?
- How are death benefits calculated?
- What is the duration of death benefits?
- Are funeral expenses covered?
What is the Illinois Workers’ Occupational Diseases Act? You can learn more here.
We at Kosin Law Office, LTD. have handled thousands of workers’ compensation claims and legal cases.
If you have been hurt or injured, let us help you get the justice and compensation you deserve!
There are NO FEES unless we collect BENEFITS for YOU! No Settlement Until YOU Are Satisfied!
We have handled thousands of accident and injury law cases. Contact us today and let our knowledge and experience work for you. We provide personal attention and offer free and confidential consultations.
Workers’ Compensation Resources
- Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission – www.iwccil.gov
- Illinois Workers’ Compensation Insurance Compliance – www.iwcc.il.gov/insurance.htm
- Illinois Workers’ Compensation Insurance Coverage Check – www.iwcc.il.gov/coverage.htm
- Illinois Workers’ Compensation Fraud Unit Investigation – www.iwcc.il.gov/fraud.htm
- Illinois Uninsured Workers’ Benefits Fund – www.iwcc.il.gov/iwbf.htm
- Illinois Workers’ Compensation Medical Fee Schedule – https://iwcc.ingenix.com/download.asp
- Illinois Workers’ Compensation Disability Benefit Rates – www.iwcc.il.gov/benefits.htm
- U.S. Department of Labor – Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs – www.dol.gov/owcp/
- U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration – www.osha.gov
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics – www.bls.gov/bls/safety.htm
Social Security Administration – www.ssa.gov - The National Institute for Occuaptional Safety and Health – http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/
- Workers’ Compensation Research Institute – https://www.wcrinet.org/