Sacramento Lawyers Help You Face Career-Ending Injuries

Has Your Source of Income Been Taken Away?

People work extremely hard to master their trades. Some spend years in school and apprenticeship programs before they even get started. Others spend years, even decades, working their way up from the entry-level positions to the top of their industry. For many individuals throughout Northern California, their careers are all they know. Nobody plans to have everything they have worked for taken away, yet it still occurs.

If you have suffered a career-ending injury, our Sacramento workers’ compensation attorneys at Smolich and Smolich are here to help you pursue the benefits that you need. Since 1969, we have steadily built a reputation for assisting people who have been forced out of their careers by work-related injuries and illnesses.

Our extensive experience allows us to effectively manage high-dollar workers’ compensation claims, helping victims of career-ending injuries pursue financial resources for lost wages and potentially lifelong medical bills. A career-ending work injury may prevent a return to the same occupation even when some capacity to work remains, and California permanent disability benefits may be available in either situation.

We Fight for Everything You Are Entitled to

Every career-ending injury case is different. Employees who perform very physical work, such as construction workers, industrial workers, and commercial drivers, may have worked too hard for too long. They may become disabled due to cumulative trauma. A young worker may have a serious injury that precludes ever returning to work. A negligent third party may have caused or contributed to the injury, opening the door to a claim that is legally distinct from the workers’ compensation case.

Our Sacramento workers’ compensation lawyers work to pursue benefits you may be entitled to, including:

State disability
Union disability pensions
Long-term or permanent disability benefits
Temporary disability benefits
Supplemental job displacement benefits
Workers’ compensation benefits
Social Security Disability
Third-party negligence claims
Access to quality medical care

Schedule Your Free Case Evaluation Today

In some cases, you may be asking for an amount of money that truly needs to last a lifetime. That is no easy task. However, after handling numerous cases for decades, we can help you understand the process.

Learn more and schedule your free case consultation by calling us at (916) 571-0400 today.

California Permanent Disability After a Work Injury

When an injury prevents a Sacramento worker from returning to a prior occupation, permanent disability benefits become one of the most consequential parts of the workers’ compensation claim. In California, these benefits are set by law rather than by a general estimate of lifetime lost wages. A primary treating physician or qualified medical evaluator determines the impairment level, expressed as a percentage, and that figure drives the benefit calculation. The applicable formula can account for the injury date, impairment level, age, and occupation, and the rules that apply depend in part on when the injury occurred.

Medical reports in a career-ending claim should address lasting restrictions, functional limitations, ongoing treatment needs, and how the injury affects the worker’s actual job duties. The analysis may extend to whether the worker can perform the former occupation, modified work, alternative work, or a different occupation entirely. What that evaluation shows can significantly affect the permanent disability rating and the benefits a worker may receive.

Return-to-Work Alternatives & Retraining Benefits

For workers with injuries on or after January 1, 2013, California law provides a supplemental job displacement benefit when an employer does not offer suitable regular, modified, or alternative work within the applicable period after receiving medical information about permanent partial disability. This benefit is provided as a nontransferable $6,000 voucher. It may be used for eligible retraining, licensing or certification fees, required tools, limited computer equipment, certain miscellaneous expenses, and limited vocational or return-to-work counseling.

A worker who receives the supplemental job displacement voucher may also qualify for a one-time $5,000 Return-to-Work Supplement Program payment, subject to the program’s application requirements and deadline. An employer’s proposed modified or alternative work should be evaluated against the worker’s medical restrictions, prior earnings, and expected duration of the position before accepting or declining it. Eligibility for either benefit depends on the injury date, medical findings, employer offer, claim records, and California statutory requirements.

For Sacramento workers whose injuries also affect long-term earning ability, these workers’ compensation benefits may intersect with a Social Security Disability claim or, where a third party contributed to the injury, a separate negligence claim. Our firm’s background handling all three areas means we can assess the full picture rather than any single piece of it.

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"I am so happy to have such knowledgeable and helpful people to help during this difficult time. Sam was super responsive and always willing to answer questions, regardless how big or small."
My circumstances were a bit unusual - my husband applied for Social Security Disability, but unfortunately passed away during the review process. Sam and Sarah worked diligently to see the case through to the end, and provide our family the benefits we were owed. A special thank you to Sam, he was always very responsive, willing to go above and beyond, and willing to answer questions whether big or small. Thank you, Smolich and Smolich!

Smolich and Smolich is so helpful!
Sacramento, CA
"very empathic"
I would totally still be lost in the red tape of the social security system without the help of my attorney Sarah Greer and my case manager Sarah Cummings. You ladies rock!! Thank you so much for all your help getting my award. I would personally recommend this law firm to anyone needing help with their claim.

Martha DelValle
Sacramento, CA
"You were so proactive and informative, you really did take away so much of my stress during the whole process."
I sincerely apologize for the delay! I truly thought I had already sent this off to almost 3 months ago! Thank goodness I had someone helping me clean and organize the apartment last week. She found your letter behind my bookcase. I would like to take this opportunity to once again thank you for your support and dedication throughout my case. You were a true blessing to me. You were so proactive and informative, you really did take away so much of my stress during the whole process. Just the fact that you returned a call so promptly was a very big deal to me. It let me know that I mattered to you, Sarah, and the firm. Thanks to the two of you I am finally settled in my own apartment and my mom was able to finally retire. So again, thank you from the depths of my heart for everything that you personally and your firm have done for me. You were true angels in my tie of need.

Mandie O'Malley
"Fantastic and Wonderful"
Sarah Greer and Sam Eldaly from Smolich & Smolich are a fabulous team to work with. I had to apply for SSDI due to my Parkinsons and they handled it not only a professionals but as if they were sitting across the table from me in person the entire time. They are a dynamite team! I highly recommend them to anyone for a fantastic and timely managed experience. Thank you Smolich & Smolich!

Barbara Light
Citrus Heights, CA
"They know what it takes to win. Thank you all so much!"
Thank you so much for your help. I was denied twice by social security disability. They are the most diligent and wonderfully. Yes it takes a while to get a hearing. If it wasn't for the great staff and attorneys here, I would have never been approved for disability. It was the best Christmas gift i received. They know what it takes to win. Thank you all so much!

Nanci Stewart
"“You don’t have to worry with Smolich by your side”"
I want to thank Smolich and Smolich for helping me get my Social Security Disability. The continued support I received from them from beginning to the end help me to stay calm thru the whole process. I couldn’t have done it without them. Marlena Jones, thank you for being so kind when I call the office with questions. I appreciate you. YOU GUYS ARE SO AWESOME !!!!!

Modesto, CA

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