Do I Have To Pay An Attorney If I Retain One In A New York Workers’ Compensation Case?
by Rosalind Asch-Hobeck
You do not have to pay an attorney to consult on your workers’ compensation injury. Fees for a workers’ compensation attorney are awarded by a Law Judge at the Workers’ Compensation Board when a monetary award is payable to you. The fee, if awarded, is paid directly from the insurance company to the attorney and is deducted from your award.
An attorney’s fee in workers’ compensation is generally less than in other types of cases. You do not pay an attorney up front and if an award is made at a workers’ compensation hearing, if that money has already been paid by the insurance company in advance of the hearing, there is no money moving. If there is no money moving the Judge will not award an attorney’s fee.
If there is a monetary award due to you whether for retroactive money or continuing payments, the attorney will request a fee out of that money. The fee is usually 15% of the amount due plus a nominal amount on the continuing payments. This is far less than the 33-40% charged in other contingency fee cases.
Awards for loss of wages in a workers’ compensation case are not taxable.
If your case results in a lump sum payment of any kind, the fee remains at 15% of the money payable to you.
Awards and rates vary depending on the average of wages you earned in the year prior to the injury and the applicable statutory maximum rate. The rate tables can be found on the NYS Workers’ Compensation Board website at www.wcb.ny.gov.
If you go to a lawyer that does not specialize in N.Y. Workers’ Compensation Law, it is not recommended that you retain that lawyer.
Navigating the worker’s compensation system as a claimant can be difficult. The Board website is helpful, but to make sure you are on the right track and are getting the benefits you are entitled to under the law, you should consult a workers’ compensation attorney. Speaking to an attorney who specializes in this field is a good thing to do.
