Gerard Malouf & Partners Manage Cases For Clients Across All Areas Of Personal Injury Law, Inheritance Disputes And Superannuation Disputes.
Gerard Malouf & Partners Have Provided Friendly, Experienced Legal Advice To Communities Across Australia For Over 35 Years. Our Personal Injury Lawyers Have Taken On Ten’s Of Thousands Of Cases And We Are Proud To Have Won Billions Of Dollars For Our Clients.
Read Our Latest Articles, Case Studies Or Commonly Asked Questions Concerning Your Legal Claims And Compensation Law.
Our client suffered a serious injury to his lower back after repeatedly lifting and maneuvering heavy planks of timber while they were being cut by a machine. Our client was an apprentice at the time and had not received training specific to the work tasks he was required to perform.
Following his injury, our client attempted to return to work but was assigned tasks that required him to lift materials contrary to the restrictions imposed by his treating GP. As a result, our client’s condition worsened, and he ceased work entirely.
Our client’s position was subsequently made redundant, and his employer ceased trading. Our client became significantly anxious and depressed due to ongoing pain and discomfit and the impact his injury was having on his life. Despite his best efforts, our client was unable to return to any form of gainful employment.
We arranged for our client to be assessed for whole person impairment. We then made a claim for permanent impairment compensation (or section 66 compensation) on his behalf, and it was ultimately agreed our client had 16% whole person impairment as a result of his injury.
Having established his impairment met the 15% whole person impairment threshold, we received instructions to make a claim for Work Injury Damages against his employer.
A Work Injury Damages claim is a common law negligence claim against the employer and is separate to a workers’ compensation claim. Under workers compensation legislation the damages that can be claimed under a Work Injury Damages claim is restricted to past and future economic loss (ie earnings loss) and loss of superannuation on those losses. A successful Work Injury Damages claim entitles the worker to receive one damages sum in full and final settlement of their workers compensation entitlements.
After receiving our client’s instructions, we served notice of a claim for Work Injury Damages on the workers compensation insurer. We served notice solely on the insurer as the employer had ceased trading, and the insurer indemnifies the defunct employer for any workers compensation liability it may have as a result of the injury.
The insurer denied liability for the payment of damages and asserted our client’s injury was not caused by a breach of the employer’s duty of care. They also alleged our client had contributed to his injury as a result of his own carelessness.
We did not accept the insurer’s position and, after reviewing thousands of pages of clinical records, reports, and factual materials, and obtaining several expert reports covering injury, liability, loss, and damage, we served the insurer with a pre-filing statement claiming damages for breach of duty of care.
The insurer maintained its decision to dispute liability for our client’s claim, so we filed proceedings in the Personal Injury Commission and the matter proceeded to Mediation.
We were confident of a successful outcome at Mediation given the thoroughness of our preparations. And, despite the insurer’s previous denial of liability, we successfully resolved the matter in our client’s favour at the Mediation, with the workers compensation insurer agreeing to pay our client just over $965,000 by way of damages.
While no sum of money can compensate a worker for the impact an injury has on their life, their family, and their loved ones, we were determined to achieve the best possible result for our client and assist him regain control over his life and continued recovery.
Our client (and his family) was delighted with the result. He was particularly grateful for the early resolution of his claim, which avoided the inevitable delay, added cost, risks, uncertainties, and anxieties associated with proceeding to a contested court hearing.
If you have suffered a workplace injury or know someone who has, be sure to contact Gerard Malouf & Partners on 1800 205 909 for a free consultation to assess your rights and entitlements.
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