THE PERSONAL INJURY/NEGLIGENCE & WORKERS’ COMPENSATION
“GLOBAL” SETTLEMENT:
A New Start In Life
New York law does not permit an injured worker to sue his employer, except under very rare circumstances. However, if an accident is caused by someone other than an employer or co-worker, we call that person a third party, which is why personal injury or negligence cases are often referred to as third-party cases.
Personal injury (or negligence or third-party) cases can happen on any job, but often come up in construction and demolition, where workers often use scaffolds and ladders, or in construction holes, and in elevator repair and maintenance, and in asbestos removal.
Although workers compensation and personal injury or third-party cases have different rules and are fought in different courts, the law also connects them in serious ways.
The most serious connection is that a workers’ compensation claimant who settles a personal injury case must give the workers’ compensation insurance company money out of the personal injury settlement. The worker must return-out of his personal injury settlement-two-thirds (2/3) of the money that the workers’ compensation insurance company paid him.
However, the good news is that the repayment of that money is negotiable. One of the most common ways of negotiating is the Section 32 Global Settlement. A Section 32 settlement happens when an injured worker wants to be free of his workers’ comp insurance company by taking a lump sum of cash in exchange for closing his case. In a “Global 32” the insurance company gives up its right to all or some of the money it is entitled to out of the personal injury settlement. That means that the injured worker walks away with more money from his personal injury case.
But it gets better. Sometimes an insurance company will not only allow the worker to keep more money in his personal injury settlement, but it will also give the worker extra cash in the “Global 32.” Apart from compensating injured men and women for lost wages and medical expenses, and, in negligence cases for pain and suffering, there is only one other important goal in fighting personal injury and workers’ compensation cases: to help injured and disabled men and women make a new start in life.
I work with some of the finest personal injury attorneys and law firms in the city to make sure that my clients are getting the most out of their cases, and can live with the dignity and independence they deserve. Having taught hundreds of free classes, I am always happy to answer questions about the connection between workers’ compensation and personal injury law, as well as social security disability and wages & hours. All you have to do is call.
My very best,
David Klein
It’s my pleasure to offer these informational articles, but I urge you to treat them as attorney advertising and not to use them as legal advice in any case you might have. It is very important that you consult with a lawyer to ask questions about your specific accident or case, and not use this article as legal advice.