Georgia Workers' Compensation Lawyer Blog

The Georgia State Board of Workers' Compensation has announced that attorneys can call the Board to submit a request for a conference call with the administrative law judge (ALJ) assigned to a claim with regard to certain issues.

This option is available should a need for resolution arise on matters that haven't been disputed and are able to be resolved within the scope of an evidentiary hearing. This could include --but isn't limited to-- all matters pertaining to problems obtaining authorization to treat with a panel or other authorized provider, problems obtaining medication prescribed by the authorized provider, authorization for diagnostic testing recommended by the authorized provider, unpaid medical bills, or accidental or improper suspension of benefits. This option is not for change of physician requests or any issues that could in any way require an evidentiary hearing.

If an ALJ is assigned to the claim, attorneys can call their offices directly to request and/or schedule the conference. To determine whether or not an ALJ has been assigned to a claim, check the file in ICMS. If there's not an ALJ assiged, counsel can call 404.656.2939 and will be referred to the appropriate administrative law judge.

In either case, a conference call can then be scheduled and all applicable parties are notified by e-mail to initiate the call. If any of the parties fail to appear or provide a minimum of twenty-four hours advance notice as to a reason for lack of availability, then they could face civil penalties; everyone is encouraged to work alongside one another and the judge's offices to  schedule mutually convenient times. Further, if a call is requested, then the opposing party has to participate unless the ALJ specifically excuses them.

The Georgia State Board of Workers' Compensation website has a comprehensive list of contact info for ALJs.  Contact our Atlanta injury lawyers' office for additional information.

In a grim turn of events, a Georgia woman lost a foot as the result of a 2010 work-related accident. Initially, the administrative law judge (ALJ) over her case granted workers' compensation benefits. Upon review, the State Board of Workers' Compensation reversed the ALJ's decision and took away the previously-granted benefits.

Vanessa Stokes, a former head custodian at an elementary school, then appealed to the Superior Court of Coweta County; they upheld the board's reversal. However, Stokes applied for and was granted a discretionary appeal with the Georgia Court of Appeals. She sought reinstatement of the original award of benefits.

The details of this case are pretty unique and interesting. In early May of 2010, Stokes arrived to open up the school grounds as was dictated by her job. It was 5:45 a.m., dark outside and a heavy rain was falling. As Stokes tells it, she pulled her car very close to the school's gates so as to aim her headlights at the lock. While she was outside her car unlocking the gates, her car began rolling downhill backwards.


Instinctively, Stokes ran toward the car so as to stop it, but tripped and fell after just a few steps. It was then that the car rolled over her left foot; a few days later the foot had to be amputated. According to Stokes, she was trying to stop the car so as to ensure that no damage occurred to school property or her car. As it turned out, the car stopped in a wooded area, still on school property.

After the ALJ awarded benefits,the State Board of Workers' Compensation overturned his decision based on their decision that the accident didn't arise out of Vanessa Stokes' employment. This is because they saw that within the scope of her job, her duties were to open the gate, unlock the building, and perform tasks of a janitorial nature. According to the Board, "going after a moving vehicle" was not part of her job and doing so "undertook a personal mission, in pursuit of [her] personal property, not connected to her duties with the [e]mployer." They also found that she didn't try to stop the vehicle for reasons of preventing injury to anyone or damage to her employer's property.

Essentially, they decided that she was deviating from her job at hand and, as such, was deprived compensation. Stokes appealed the case and was shot down by the Superior Court. The Court of Appeals disagreed with the upholding of the reversal and overturned it, saying,
"Under the circumstances presented, we conclude that the Board's decision was based upon an erroneous theory regarding what conduct constitutes a deviation from employment that will bar compensation under the [Workers' Compensation] Act. It is undisputed that, at the instant Stokes' car began to roll, she was on duty (not on break); she was physically located precisely where her job duties required her to be at that time, that is, at the driveway gate; and, she was unlocking the gate, a task required by her job duties and of benefit to the employer. Indeed, but for the necessity that she stop her car on the sloped driveway and exit the car to open the gate, the accident would not have occurred."

So, as this case illustrates, your case isn't over at an initial 'no'. If you need help pursuing the workers' compensation benefits you are entitled to, contact Moebes Law at our Atlanta law office at 404-354-5432.

The Georgia State Board of Workers' Compensation has, relatively recently, added a hyperlink on its website that allows searching for Administrative Law Judges' decisions from workers' compensation hearings in Georgia.

So, if you're wondering what a workers' comp decision looks like, what's important v. unimportant to an ALJ, or what issues are most frequently litigated, take a gander at the link here and do some searching.

After reading a few decisions, direct questions about workers' comp law to our Atlanta office:

Moebes Law, LLC
3535 Piedmont Road NE
Building 14, Suite 410
Atlanta, GA 30305
(404)354-5432

Under O.C.G.A. § 24-10-24, if you receive a subpoena to testify in court in Georgia, whether for a workers' compensation hearing or other civil action here, your witness fee is $25 per day and $.20 per mile (roundtrip) for traveling expenses.  This is required for service to be valid if your residence is outside the county where the proceeding is to take place.

The payment may be cash, cashier's check, postal money order, certified check, or attorney/law firm check.

For other answers to questions about civil litigation, personal injury claims, and workers' compensation law issues, please contact our office via the following:

Moebes Law, LLC
3535 Piedmont Road NE
Building 14, Suite 410
Atlanta, GA 30305
(404)354-5432

An Atlanta police officer is taking his Georgia workers' compensation case to a hearing at the State Board of Workers' Compensation in Atlanta, and several of his colleagues from the APD are rallying around him and his case to support his fight to get the medical care he needs to recover from his workplace injuries. 

Just as these officers are assisting their pained coworker, if you are having trouble getting the medical care you need or the disability benefits you should be getting after your workplace injury, keep in mind whom you can count on from your employer.  Consider having your workers' comp attorney subpoena any sympathetic team members (and certainly any witnesses to your injury) for the workers' compensation hearing if they can testify about facts that will help the Administrative Law Judge realize the nature of your injury and the pain it is causing. 

For assistance with your workers' compensation questions in Georgia, please contact our main law office in Atlanta:
 
Moebes Law, LLC
3535 Piedmont Road NE
Building 14, Suite 410
Atlanta, GA  30305
(404)354-5432

When you file a workers' compensation claim in Georgia, more than likely, the defense attorney is going to schedule your deposition. It's your opportunity to answer questions about your injury and its aftermath while showing what a great witness you'll make at any upcoming hearing.

While you may not want to spend a couple of hours at my office being deposed by the insurance company's attorney, it's usually a prerequisite to getting your case resolved by litigation or settling, so don't decide to skip it. It's not a "meeting" or "conference." It's a deposition--a question and answer session that's recorded and is given under oath.

Please don't miss your deposition.

If you file a workers' compensation hearing request in Georgia, you will almost certainly have your deposition taken by the insurance defense attorney. You may be a bit nervous about sitting in a conference room with a couple of lawyers and a court reporter, but in general, it's not an event to dread.

Your deposition allows you a chance to tell your side of the story.  It gives the attorney representing your employer and its insurer a chance to see what kind of witness you'll make--how good your memory is, whether you appear injured, how articulate you are, and how truthful your demeanor is. Most of the time, the workers' compensation claim will start moving toward litigation or settlement after the deposition and any medical records requests that follow are completed.

When the questioning attorney asks you questions, you are under oath. Always tell the truth. Listen carefully to questions asked. If you don't know the answer to a question, say so; don't speculate. And if you think an answer to a question is harmful (such as questions about old injuries, car wrecks, and workers' comp claims in your past), be truthful anyway. Let your attorney worry about how to handle the facts. Chances are, the information you're worried about revealing won't be an issue anyway (especially in Georgia, where an aggravation of a past injury is a new injury under workers' compensation law).

The worst response you can give in a deposition is an untruthful one. If you look like a liar in front of the Administrative Law Judge, you will have a hard time winning your case or getting anything reasonable as a settlement offer. Again, listen to the questions carefully, tell the truth, and trust your workers' compensation attorney at Moebes Law to present your case for you.