Although workers’ compensation laws are intended as a way to take care of employees who are injured on the job, unfortunately, there are times when they fail to help people as they’re meant to. However, some recent changes to Tennessee workers’ compensation laws may make it harder for an employer to wrongfully deny a claim.
The new laws state that an employer can be held liable for not providing the correct medical treatment (whether in the form of surgery, supplies, or medication), as detailed in a settlement or judgment, for wrongfully denying a claim, or for being slow to provide an employee with the benefits to which he or her is entitled. Employers may find themselves financially penalized for doing any of these things because the laws now state that attorneys’ fees and all reasonable costs for depositions and trials may be passed on to the employer if the employer is found to be negligent in the previously stated instances.
Another change is that, as of July 1, 2016, an employee’s reporting time for a work-related injury has decreased from 30 days post-accident to 15. Ideally, this will speed up the process of both reporting injuries and filing and settle a claim.
With these changes in place, hopefully, more injured workers will be able to receive the justice they deserve.
Gary Massey, Jr., is a well-known courtroom advocate practicing law in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Gary is a native of Tennessee who began practicing law in 1998. He graduated from Cumberland School of Law where he was ranked in the top 3% of his class and was an editor of the Cumberland Law Review.
