Can field service engineer living in Indiana & injured in Missouri obtain Illinois Workers Compensation?
Situation:
Can field service engineer living in Indiana & injured in Missouri obtain Illinois Workers Compensation?
The workers compensation lawyers at Lipkin & Higgins represented a 45 year old Field Service Engineer and resident of Northeast Indiana who came to us with a history of back problems and having undergone spinal fusion surgery when he was 24 years old. While installing a motor weighing 250 pounds at a customer’s plant in St. Louis, Missouri, our client suffered an aggravation of his old back problem when the forklift supporting the motor jerked suddenly and caused our client to bear the weight of the motor in his lower back. He underwent a second spinal fusion.
Our client began working for his present employer approximately 16 months earlier and though experiencing occasional periods of back pain, sought no medical treatment and took no time off from work. As a result of the second spinal fusion our client incurred medical bills of more than $83,000. The employer’s Workers’ Compensation insurance company denied the claim, citing the client’s previous history of back problems and the unclear circumstances of the accident. Our client was left with no income and a disabling back condition that prevented him from earning a living and supporting his wife and three children.
After investigating the facts of the accident we went to St. Louis and deposed two co-workers. We then had in-depth discussions with our client’s neurosurgeon - a resident of Northeast Indiana - about the circumstances of his accident and his back injury. We obtained a favorable medical report from the neurosurgeon in which she stated that our client’s work accident was a contributing cause to the fusion surgery she performed. Under the law, an on-the-job-accident does not have to be the sole or even primary cause of injury, so long as it is some role in causing injury.
Because our client had no income and was desperate for income, Lipkin & Higgins brought an emergency petition for trial to determine whether or not he was entitled to the benefits provided by the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act. The employer tried to transfer the case to Missouri from Illinois claiming that the trial should occur in the state where the accident occurred. The Court agreed with us that the case should remain in Illinois.
Our client worked for a company based in Schaumburg, Illinois at the time of the occurrence and received his work instructions from his employer at the Schaumburg office. Lipkin & Higgins represents clients from all walks of life who live in all parts of North America. You do not have to be an Illinois resident, nor does your accident have to have occurred in Illinois for us to help you. If you work for an Illinois company, you may be afforded the protection of the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Act.
Successful Resolution: $199,000
On the eve of trial the employer’s insurance company gave up and offered our client all back pay owed, payment of all medical expenses and the compensation for permanent disability that we had demanded. Our client has returned to his job with his company
