Manfred F Ricciardelli II’s Answers

Your attorney is correct. New Jersey WC does not contemplate payments for pain and suffering. Your settlement money is based solely upon loss of function. You compare your functioning ability for the period just before the incident to the period when you condition has plateaued. You literally put a numerical percentage of disability on the injury (ie 20%). You then refer to a chart for the year of the injury to determine the gross settlement amount for that injury.

There is a 2 year statute of limitations within which you must file a negligence suit. So that is out. The 2 year statute of limitations for a WC suit is 2 years from the date of accident or the date of last payment, whichever is later in time. This means that if the employer/WC insurance carrier provided benefits to you in the last 2 years, including medical care or pay for lost time from work, you would still be able to file a claim for the incident that occurred 9 years ago. From your...

You need to act very quickly. If your case settled as an Order Approving Settlement, which seems likely, you have 2 years from your date of last payment to reopen the matter. The last payment is usually the last permanent disability check you received after settlement. However, if there was additional, post settlement payments for medical care and lost time from work (this is very unlikely), they would also qualify as payments. Once the 2 year period has lapsed, your case is closed forever....

You can certainly sue the City of Newark in a New Jersey Workers Compensation claim. You must only show that the injury "arose out of" and "in the course of" your employment, This essentially means that you were working when the injury occurred. Under NJ WC law the city would have to provide you with medical care. As a police office, you would likely receive full pay for any time you are required to be out of work. When treatment is over, if you could prove that you have ongoing physical...

Obviously I can not be certain, but if your case was dismissed it was likely due to "Lack of Prosecution". If so, this type of dismissal is without prejudice. You have one year from the date of dismissal to restore this case to the active list. You must successfully file a Motion with the Court to do so. My suggestion is to discuss this issue with your attorney and then decide how you want to proceed.

I assume you are wondering whether you have legal recourse. If you believe you were assaulted, you may file a complaint with the local police department. If you require medical care, lost time from work or were otherwise injured, you can file a workers' compensation claim against your employer.

The insurance carrier must make payment within 60 days, although they usually do so in a shorter time period. T

SInce you have placed this question in the Workers Compensation section, I assume that the office you fell at is the office where you worked. It certainly would have been preferable for you to have reported your injury. However, you are still able to file a claim, although you should act quickly. There are other ways to prove that the injury occurred as you say it did and that you need medical care as a result. You should not delay any further and contact an attorney.

If you are injured at work, you may file a claim. If you can show entitlement, you are eligible for 3 types of benefits. These are payment of medical care; pay for lost time from work; and money after treatment is over. If you believe you have a work related injury, you should retain an attorney to assist you. The attorney will be paid on a contingency basis, meaning he will get a percentage of the settlement money you receive.

Yes. From your question, I assume that the Workers Compensation carrier is paying for your doctors and the employer was providing light duty because those doctors said you were medically unable to perform your regular duty work. If so, the fact that you were terminated will not negatively impact your Workers Compensation claim. You are still entitled to medical benefits; are very likely now entitled to pay for your time out of work (although this issue is somewhat fact sensitive) and, at the...