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Settling your Oklahoma Workers'
Compensation claim
versus
Trying your claim to a Judge.
All workmans' compensation claims
come to an end. Under the current laws, you can agree to a specific amount
of money and receive that money in a lump sum settlement
OR
you can try your case to a Judge
and let the Judge decide how impaired you are.
Which route you take depends on
many factors. If you try your case to a Judge, the Judge will issue an
order concerning the nature and extent (severity) of your injury in the form of
awarding a certain amount of Permanent Partial Disability or Permanent Total
Disability benefits.
Permanent
Partial Disability ("PPD")
Hopefully, you will have a full recovery as many people do. But,
what if you don't have a full recovery?
PPD is
calculated by multiplying two factors,
1) 70% of
your average weekly wage, and
2) your
degree of impairment
(Loss of function)
Impairment is expressed in a
percentage of loss of function (1%, 10%, 50%), and that percentage
determines how many weeks of compensation you could receive at your weekly
rate.
3) Up to a
maximum of $359 per week
(for injuries occurring
between November 1, 2009 and October 31, 2010)
A worker's
"average weekly wage" is typically computed during the
Temporary
Disability portion of a work comp claim. The same wage is the basis
to calculate your PPD.
Commentary - 100% PPD
would yield an absolute maximum of $179,500 at the 2009-2010 maximum rate. A workers' compensation
claim cannot live up to the perception some people have of it as a
"jackpot justice" system. We must all be vigilant to protect the
rights of workers in Oklahoma. I truly believe some of those in
our State government have an agenda to enhance the profitability of
insurance companies at the expense of each and every working Oklahoman
including me. Change and reform can be good, but what is
happening now, including the proposed reduction of number of Judges will
serve to further the long term interests of insurance companies and not
average working people.
Permanent
Total Disability ("PTD")
The Oklahoma Workers'
Compensation system's definition of Permanent Total Disability (PTD)
is substantially similar to the requirements to be disabled under
provisions of the Social Security system and can simplified as:
The inability
to engage in any substantial gainful employment given the claimant's age,
education, and experience.
This is a difficult burden
to prove, but we have the experience to help you prove this issue if it is
appropriate for you.
PTD Rate of
Compensation
PTD is calculated to be 70%
of an employee's average weekly wages not to exceed the states average
weekly wage ($717
effective Nov.1, 2009)
Social
Security Disability
Social Security Disability programs adopt the same basic
definition of disability. We have seen claimants with a 5% workers'
compensation impairment rating be awarded Social Security disability
insurance benefits just as we have seen claimants found to be 100%
disabled under Workers Comp but not be found disabled under Social
Security.
If you are
unable to return to work because of your work injury or a combination of
your work injury with pre-existing conditions, you should consult us
for an free evaluation
as we have extensive experienced in handling
Social Security
claims.
Contact us
Affiliated sites
MMortimerLaw.com
OklahomaSocialSecurityLawyer.com
Workers' Compensation Settlement
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