WorkCover and Workers Compensation Lawyers Townsville

Your compensation entitlement depends on whether you are making a statutory or common law claim. Statutory compensation claims often include lost wages, medical expenses, and a cash sum calculated in accordance with a statutory formula. If you accept the cash sum, you cannot proceed with a common law claim.

We strongly encourage you to seek legal advice before accepting or rejecting any offer.
If an employee is injured at work and they can show their employer is at fault, they may be entitled to more compensation. This form of lump-sum compensation includes payment for the following:

1. Pain and suffering
2. Loss of wages, superannuation (plus interest) from the day when the injury occurred until the payment of compensation
3. Allowance for the expected future loss of wages and superannuation
4. Medical expenses – past and future
5. In certain cases, compensation for the time their family or friends have spent caring for them
6. Legal services and costs (to a certain extent).

Contact our personal injury lawyers, for a no-obligation free initial claim assessment to see if you are entitled to compensation.

Determining whether you plan to pursue a claim for statutory or common law lump sum benefits is the initial step in the claims process. This decision will dictate which forms you need to complete and what other steps you need to take to obtain the maximum compensation in the shortest amount of time.

Claiming Statutory Compensation

For statutory compensation, a simple form is accessible from the WorkCover website, which should be completed straight after the injury occurs or is noticed. It’s important to note that some injuries may occur over time, like repetitive strain injuries, and may not be linked to a specific event.

Once the form is completed and submitted to WorkCover, they typically approve the claim and start paying statutory benefits immediately. If WorkCover rejects the form or stops payment of statutory benefits, it is crucial to get urgent legal advice to review your rights regarding WorkCover’s decision to deny or stop compensation payments.

Claiming A Lump Sum Compensation

If you have been injured and wish to claim Lump Sum compensation, you must complete a Notice of Claim form and send it to WorkCover. You have three years from the date of injury to submit your claim. In some cases, you may have more time to make a claim.

After you send your Notice of Claim, WorkCover will assign a lawyer to review your submission.

Within six months of receiving your Notice of Claim, WorkCover will respond to your lawyer with their decision. They will either accept or deny liability for the claim or accept liability for only part of the claim.

After receiving WorkCover’s response, the injured person will undergo one or more medical examinations conducted by a qualified practitioner to assess the nature of their injuries. Alongside obtaining independent medical evidence, our compensation lawyers assist in gathering all relevant information for our client’s claim, including:

• Medical records
• Financial documentation
• Out of pocket expenses; and
• Statements and advice from colleagues, witnesses and firm members.

Statements and advice typically include details of the accident, alongside the nature and extent of the injuries suffered. They can also include the impacts that the injuries have had on our client’s day to day life.

After obtaining all the relevant information and documentation, along with independent medical evidence, WorkCover typically arranges a mandatory conference. This conference can be arranged either directly or through a Barrister. The main aim of this conference is to present your case to WorkCover’s lawyers and negotiate a fair settlement.

If negotiations are successful, WorkCover will work with you to agree on a fair amount of compensation. Once determined, you will enter into a Deed of Settlement with WorkCover. Typically, compensation is paid out within 30 days. Our success rate for similar claims is over 85%.

If a claim cannot be settled during a compulsory conference, the next step is to start legal proceedings in the appropriate court and participate in mediation to resolve the matter.

Mediation is a formal meeting between WorkCover’s lawyers and your team. It is like a compulsory conference, but with an independent senior Barrister who is engaged by both parties to act independently. The goal is to negotiate an appropriate payment to compensate you for your injuries.

The difference between a compulsory conference and mediation is that the mediation is supervised by an independent senior Barrister, often a Queen’s Counsel. They seek to broker a negotiated settlement of your claim. All our client’s claims have settled at or before a mediation, and we have never taken a worker’s compensation claim to trial.

However, if your claim does not settle at a compulsory conference or mediation, it will proceed to trial before a judge. The judge will determine if WorkCover is liable to compensate you and, if so, how much compensation you are entitled to.

The WorkCover website has a simple form that must be filled out as soon as possible after an injury is sustained or discovered. Remember in some cases, injuries can be caused over a period of time, such as repetitive strain injuries, that will not necessarily be attributable to a specific incident. 

Once the form is filled out and submitted to WorkCover, WorkCover will generally accept the claim and commence paying statutory benefits immediately.  If WorkCover rejects your claim or stops paying benefits, you will need to get legal advice to understand your rights to review their decision.

The process of claiming lump sum compensation commences upon completion of a Notice of Claim via the approved form. The Notice must be submitted to WorkCover within three years of the date of injury being suffered, or, in limited circumstances, another period of time.

Once the Notice of Claim is submitted, WorkCover will typically appoint one of their panel lawyers to investigate the circumstances described in the Notice of Claim.

Within six months of receipt of the Notice of Claim, WorkCover will provide a formal response to the worker’s Lawyer. This response will advise whether WorkCover accepts liability for the claim, denies liability for the claim, or accepts liability in part.

Once WorkCover’s response has been received, the injured person will undertake one or more independent medical examinations. These will be conducted by a qualified medical practitioner to report on the nature of the injuries.  In conjunction with obtaining independent medical evidence, our compensation lawyers help you to collate all information relevant to our client’s claim such as:

• Medical records
• Financial documentation
• Out-of-pocket expenses; and
• Statements and advice from colleagues, witnesses and firm members.

Generally, statements and advice cover the circumstances of the accident and the nature and extent of the injuries that our client has suffered. They can also include the impacts that the injuries have had on our client’s day-to-day life.

Once all the independent medical evidence and all relevant information and documentation has been obtained and disclosed to WorkCover, a compulsory conference will generally be convened. This can either be done directly or via a Barrister. The purpose of the compulsory conference is to present your case to WorkCover’s Lawyers with a view to seeking to negotiate a suitable settlement.

If negotiations are successful (our success rate is over 85%), an appropriate amount of compensation will be agreed upon, and you will enter into a Deed of Settlement with WorkCover. Compensation is then generally paid within 30 days.

On the rare occasion that a claim is not settled at the compulsory conference, the next step is to commence legal proceedings in the appropriate Court and engage in mediation.

Mediation is similar to a compulsory conference in that it is a formal meeting between WorkCover’s Lawyers and your team. They generally include a Barrister retained on your behalf. During mediation, you will seek to further negotiate an appropriate payment to compensate you for injuries that you have suffered. 

The major difference between a compulsory conference and mediation is that mediation is supervised by an independent senior Barrister (often a Queen’s Counsel). The Barrister is engaged by both WorkCover and you to act independently. Their goal is to seek to broker a negotiated settlement of your claim.

As of 30 June 2017, all our client’s claims have been resolved either through mediation or before going to trial. That said, if a claim does not settle at either a compulsory conference or mediation, the matter will progress to trial before a Judge. The judge will ultimately determine whether WorkCover is liable to compensate you and, if so, how much compensation you are entitled to.

Yes!!!

Time limits apply when it comes to making a worker’s compensation claim. In most cases you must file a worker’s compensation claim within three years of the accident or injury. Sometimes it’s difficult to know exactly when an injury happened, especially for injuries that occur gradually over a long time. In such cases, the three-year timeframe begins from the moment you first consult a doctor about the injury.

Townsville Compensation Lawyers handle all workers’ compensation claims on a no-win no-fee agreement. We won’t ask for any payment upfront, and we’ll also take care of any upfront expenses related to your claim. We’ll handle costs such as independent medical report fees and disbursements like Barristers (if they don’t operate on a no-win no-fee agreement) or expert reports.

We charge fees based on the work we do for your claim and the time our team spends on your case if the claim is successful. Prior to any resolution event, like a compulsory conference or mediation, we will give you a detailed overview of the costs up to that point. This will help you make informed decisions about any offers made and know exactly how much you will receive in your “back pocket.”

On average, it takes us about a year from our initial consultation with a client to reach a mandatory conference where most claims are resolved. In exceptional situations or when our client has sustained severe injuries, this timeline may extend. Thanks to our lawyers’ expertise, we can usually provide an estimate of the process duration during our first meeting.

If your job is causing you stress, you may be eligible for compensation. This can be obtained through WorkCover or a Common Law Lump Sum claim. To file a claim, you must demonstrate that your work is related to a mental condition you have. This condition can include stress, anxiety, depression, or post-traumatic stress disorder.

Contact our personal injury lawyers for a free assessment of your claim to see if you are eligible for compensation.

Yes. Casual workers have the same legal entitlements as permanent employees when it comes to making a WorkCover claim. Although your job security is more uncertain, if you sustain an injury and cannot work, you have the same protection via WorkCover.

Speak to our compensation lawyers in Townsville to understand what you could be entitled to.