Your Guide Through a Difficult Process
If your employer or insurer rejected your work-related disability claim, it's not the last word. But you will almost certainly need a lawyer with experience at all levels of the workers' compensation appeal process.
Portland lawyer Peter Hansen has a solid record in appeals of denied claims in a complicated system that is decidedly stacked against the injured worker. He takes cases in Multnomah County and surrounding counties of western Oregon.
Whether your claim is denied, pending or not yet submitted, we can increase your odds of approval. Contact the Law Offices of Peter Hansen for a free consultation.
Workers' Compensation Appeals
The appeals system has been made needlessly complex with many different places to go to appeal depending on the legal issue. We have experience at all stages of the claims and appeals process:
- Filing the claim with your employer's insurance carrier
- Reconsideration of the claim closure to get additional compensation
- A formal appeal to the Oregon workers' compensation Board or the Division
If you are appealing a rating of disability benefits, the case goes to the Workers' Compensation Division's Appellate Review Unit. If you were turned down for medical treatment, the case goes to the Medical Review Unit, or for Vocational Rehabilitation the Rehab Review Unit. The rules are different in each branch.
In a denied claim the first level is a hearing before an administrative law judge (ALJ). If you are appealing a Reconsideration Order on extent of your disability the ALJ is the second level of appeal. While the judge may be fair, he/she is bound by Oregon's workers' comp rules in reviewing the insurance company's determination of how disabled you are. (Under Oregon law, you cannot even testify at your own hearing on the issue of your own permanent partial disability!)
If your ALJ appeal is rejected or you disagree with your disability rating, you can appeal to the Workers' Compensation Board, a five-member administrative panel appointed by the Governor in Salem that represents labor, industry and the public.
The WCB reviews the case "de novo." That is Latin for "new." That means they can substitute their own opinion for that of the ALJ. Beyond that, we can petition the Oregon Court of Appeals to re-examine your case, and from there the last recourse is the Supreme Court of Oregon. Court review is limited; the judges cannot substitute their opinion for that of the Board.
Experienced Appeals Representation
Peter O. Hansen is a proven trial lawyer with substantial results at the initial claims, reconsideration and ALJ levels. In 30 years of focused practice, he has also won appeals before the WCB and in state courts.
We will explain the complex appeals process and your rights, and fight for you at every step. As a client, it costs the same to hire us the same day you are injured as it does to hire us after your claim is denied. We can do much more at the early stage to help. Call now at 503-821-7934 or 866-661-8679 for a free consultation.
