15 Common Workers’ Compensation Terms Explained | Work Comp Lawyer in Ramsey County

Workers compensation can be complicated, and the legal jargon that accompanies the business only serves to make matters more confusing. Having a legal professional in your corner can help you win your case, but they can also help explain terms or clauses that may be confusing. We hope to do the same in this blog. Below, you’ll find an explanation for 15 common terms you may run into during your work comp case.

Workers’ Compensation Terms

Here’s a quick look at 15 terms your might run into during the course of your workers’ compensation case:

Claim – A claim is what you file in order to receive compensation for your work injury.

Cumulative Injury – This is a work injury that has no acute cause, but instead was caused by repetitive motion or repeated exposures at work.

Final Order – This is a decision or award that has been made by a workers’ compensation judge that has not been appealed.

Independent Medical Examiner – An IME, as the name implies, is an independent doctor that will provide a neutral evaluation of your injuries and provide a report on your injuries.

Maximum Medical Improvement – MMI is a health rating provided by a doctor that suggests at what level a person will be unlikely to improve any more within the next year. If you’re no longer improving during physical therapy or rehab sessions, a doctor may rule that you’ve reached maximum medical improvement.

Mediation Conference – This is a voluntary meeting between both parties to try and reach a settlement instead of going before a judge. If no settlement is reached, than the case heads to a judge.

Permanent Disability Rating – This is a percentage that estimates how much a work injury permanently limits the kind of work you can do. This is based on your medical condition, the date of injury, your age, your current work role and your diminished work capacity. This rating determines how many weeks of permanent disability benefits you’re entitled to receive.

Permanent Partial Disability – PPD benefits are what you receive when your work injury partially limits the work you can do for the remainder of your life.

Permanent Total Disability – PTD benefits are what you receive if your work injury leaves you permanently unable to work.

Qualified Rehab Consultant – A QRC is a person who is trained to evaluate, counsel and help injured workers find new jobs or a new role in their company based on their limitations from their work injury.

Reconsideration of Disability Rating – This is what you file if you believe a doctor has made a mistake in your permanent disability rating.

Settlement – A settlement is an agreement between you and your company’s insurance provider about your work injury compensation and any future payments.

Temporary Partial Disability – TPD benefits are what you receive when you are partially limited in your work capabilities for a temporary period.

Temporary Total Disability – TTD benefits are what you receive when you can’t work but are expected to eventually make a full recovery.

Work Restrictions – Work restrictions are actions and activities ordered by your doctor that you should not participate in until you’ve made a full recovery.

If you have questions about a term not listed above, or another work comp related question, reach out to Dean Margolis and his office today!