Workers' Compensation:
Workers' compensation is insurance that an employer is required by law to carry in case an employee is injured on-the-job or becomes ill, temporarily or permanently disabled, or fatally injured due to circumstances surrounding his or her job

Although workers' compensation laws vary from state to state, covered medical care generally includes medical, surgical and hospital services, dental services, crutches, hearing aids, chiropractic treatment, physical therapy, nursing care and prescribed medications.  Additional monetary compensation may be provided if an injured employee is temporarily unable to work for more than a certain number of calendar days set by state law, hospitalized as an in-patient, or becomes permanently disabled due to a job-related injury or illness.  The right to receive medical treatment at the employer's expense typically continues as long as treatment is reasonable and necessary to treat the injury.

Orthopedic Injuries:
Orthopedic injuries can include injuries involving the spine, bones, joints, muscles, nerves and other parts of the skeletal system.  The most common orthopedic injuries are bone fractures, sprains and strains.  Sprains describe an injury to a ligament and strains describe an injury to muscle.  Treatment for orthopedic injuries include medical counseling, medications, casts, splints and therapies, such as exercise or surgery.

Construction/Industrial Accidents:
Construction labor makes up one of the three most dangerous occupations in the United States today; each year producing thousands of debilitating injuries and wrongful deaths.  Factors that contribute to construction accidents include workers lifting loads with worn and weathered cables, working on elevated platforms without fall protection or wearing defective safety harnesses and lanyards, and/or working in trenches with improper benching and using outdated tools and equipment.

Construction site personal injury law is not practiced nor understood by many personal injury attorneys.  As a result, many personal injury construction claims are often subject to mediocre representation and minimal financial compensation due to improper legal counsel.  Injured construction workers are urged to seek a workers' compensation attorney who is knowledgeable in a variety of construction techniques and has successfully litigated numerous construction site personal injury cases.

Retaliatory Discharge:
If an individual is terminated from their place of employment after reporting a workers' compensation claim, he or she could be entitled to substantial damages in a retaliatory discharge lawsuit against their former employer.

Federal laws prohibit an employer from discharging or discriminating against an employee because of a workers' compensation injury.  If an employer fires or forces the resignation of an injured employee in retaliation for filing a workers' compensation claim, the employee can file a civil lawsuit against the employer seeking damages in court, provided the employee has evidence of such an allegation.  Also, if an employer denies permission for immediate medical attention following a work-related injury, or does not permit an employee to seek out the services of other medical professionals in conjunction with assigned company doctors, the employee can seek legal retribution under workers' compensation laws.

Social Security Disability (SSD):
Social Security provides disability insurance benefits to those who have worked and paid Social Security taxes and have become disabled. In order to receive benefits, the claimant must establish 1) that the disabling condition makes it impossible to perform any substantial work, and 2) that the disability is expected to last at least a year or until death.

Supplemental Security Income (SSI):
Social Security provides SSI benefits for those who are severely disabled but not eligible to receive Social Security disability insurance benefits. This is usually because the claimant did not work long enough in Social Security covered employment to establish eligibility. SSI differs substantially from Social Security disability. The benefits are lower, there is no provision for dependent or survivors benefits, and the disabled person cannot own substantial assets or have substantial income from any source.

Cessation:
Cessation involves the involuntary termination of Social Security disability or SSI benefits. This is usually based on a determination that the disabling condition does not exist or no longer exists and/or, in the case of SSI, that the disabled person’s income and/or assets are too substantial to warrant benefits.

If you or someone you know in Massachusetts needs the assistance of an experienced Boston Workers' Compensation Attorney, call Michael Walsh today at 866-435-2594, or complete the contact form provided on this site to schedule your initial consultation.

• Suffolk University, cum laude, 1984
• Suffolk University Law School, Juris Doctorate, 1987

• U.S. Supreme Court
• U.S. District Court
• U.S. Court of Appeals
• Massachusetts Bar
• Massachusetts State Courts

• Former Member Suffolk University Law School Alumni Board, 2001 - 2003
• Present Suffolk University CAS Alumni Board, 2004-2008
• Former Partner for Wynn & Wynn PC for 14 Years, 1988 - 2002

• Member of the Massachusetts Bar Association
• Member of the Boston Bar Association
• Member, Massachusetts Academy of Trial Attorneys