Our DBA lawyers see all-to-often that contractors try to litigate the case themselves. We hear from contractors that they are not the “suing” type or they say that the DBA insurance carrier’s adjuster has been nice to them. Probably every week, we receive phone calls from former PMCs asking if they can have their case reopened after a settlement. Oftentimes, we are hired only after an insurance carrier terminates or reduces a contractor’s pay, refuses to authorize a particular medical procedure or offers to settle a case for a lowball amount.
Best Time to Hire a DBA Attorney
The best time to hire a DBA lawyer is at the very beginning because you will have a DBA lawyer on your side ready to go if the carrier reduces or stops your pay or refuses to provide medical care you are entitled to under the DBA. Having a Defense Base Act attorney on your side already is important because it may take weeks to obtain medical records, X-rays, MRIs, etc. from physicians and these records are needed when insurance companies delay, deny or defend your claim.
What DBA Lawyers Do
When our law firm is hired, we immediately request all medical records and regularly obtain medical records. We regularly have meetings with clients to prepare them for evaluations set up by the insurance companies, vocational interviews, functional capacity evaluations and more. Having Tim Nies as your DBA attorney early on, means that you will have an experienced attorney ready to step in and fight for your rights without any delay. Tim will quickly take your case up to the Department of Labor and the Administrative Law Judges as soon as the insurance company does not do what they are supposed to do, which is to fairly compensate you and provide medical care. Our DBA lawyer, Tim Nies, goes to battle for contractors both in Court at the OALJ, during DBA settlement negotiations and at DBA mediations.
DBA Lawyer Fees are Paid by the DBA Insurance Company
We do not charge a consultation fee. Our hourly fees are paid for separately by the insurance company after a settlement, or by the DBA insurance company if we win on an issue and force the DBA Insurance company, or a third party administrator, like Gallagher Bassett, to do something they refused to do. It is not part of your compensation payments and is not a part of your settlement. You will not receive a bill from us. We do not take any percentage of your DBA settlement.