Were you injured while working at your California job by someone or some entity not connected with your regular employer? If so, you may have two legal cases to pursue recovery. One would be your regular work comp case, and the other would be a claim or lawsuit against the person or business that caused you harm, as long as it is not your employer.
Why? Because in California, like most other states, you cannot directly sue your employer for injuries that occurred while you are performing your job duties or injuries caused by your co-workers. That is what regular Workers’ Compensation insurance is for, and this rule has been around since the 1920s. In fact, it is called “workers’ compensation exclusive remedy rule.”
One Main Exception to the Workers' Comp Exclusive Remedy Rule
If someone or some entity, not connected in any way to your regular employer or employment, injures you on your California job, you have the legal right to sue that person or entity in California state or federal court for your injuries. So, in that sense, you would have two injury claims going, one under regular workers’ compensation, and one against the person or entity causing all the harms.
So, if that happened to you, this is a great legal position to be in. How can that be? Well, you see, you cannot obtain what is called “pain and suffering” damages in a California workers’ compensation case. You can only claim damages for how the work injury affected your ability to compete in the market place.
With that said, having a third-party injury claim to pursue against the person or entity that causes your harm and injury, you have the legal right to pursue pain and suffering damages. This is huge because pain and suffering damages are the biggest part of any injury case. Those are damages to make up for what you are going through in terms of your medical care, and what you are left with in terms of any permanent injury. They give damages for your loss of enjoyment of life, duties, or activities under duress while you are living. These damages are valuable and precious to you, and if you have the ability to pursue them, this places you in a great legal position to obtain them.
To this end, I don’t handle regular workers’ compensation injury cases, but if an injured worker is injured by someone or some entity outside of their employment, then I will most definitely take that case on, and pursue those precious third-party damages, including pain and suffering.
San Diego, California Workers' Compensation Attorney
If you were injured by someone not being careful enough, then fill out my convenient online form to schedule a free consultation to learn how I can help you today. Or, you can always call me direct at 619.813.7955, or via email at mark@blanelaw.com.
