What to Bring to Your Workers’ Compensation Consultation

This post explains what you should try to bring with you to your first workers’ compensation consultation in our office.

We offer a free consultation for any work related accident. If you have been injured at work, no matter what the circumstances, I will be happy to talk to you and give you my honest opinion of your claim.

You do not pay attorneys fees in a workers’ comp claim unless your attorney wins money for you. This is a contingency fee.

And even then the attorney’s fee is set by the Maryland Workers’ Comp Commission. Attorney’s fees in workers’ compensation claims are regulated by Maryland law and the Workers’ Compensation Commissioners. We all get the same fee rate, and we get what the Commissioner decides to give us. We cannot set our own fees. This obviously protects you the injured worker.

We can do a free consultation in our office face to face, or over Zoom, or even by phone. We will do whatever is most convenient for you. Contact us today to make an appointment.

Do I Have to Bring Anything?

No. You do not have to bring anything with you. All we really need is you.

I need to talk to you about what happened in your accident, and what your injury is, and I need to know about what medical treatment you have gotten so far. But I can figure all that out verbally. I don’t need any documents to get things started in a Maryland workers’ compensation claim.

What Should I Bring if I Can?

While you don’t need anything, it would be helpful if you could bring any of the following documents or pieces of information. Some of this is just information you need to know when we meet. It doesn’t even involve documents.

• A claim number, if you have one. If you filed a formal claim with the Maryland Workers’ Compensation Commission, you will have a claim number. Your claim number is likely to start with a W and have 6 digits after it (like W123456). This is the single most helpful thing you can bring with you, and it isn’t even something you can bring. It’s just a number! (But, you may not yet have a formal claim on file. That is fine, we will file it for you when we meet.)
• Any documents you received from the Maryland Workers’ Compensation Commission, especially any Orders, claim forms, or notices. If you file a workers’ comp claim the Workers’ Comp Commission will send you emails and documents.
• A copy of any claim you may have filed for this accident. This could include any claim you filed with your employer or the insurance company for your employer. To have a valid workers’ comp claim in Maryland, you have to file a formal claim online with the Maryland Workers’ Compensation Commission. But often, people come to me with an informal claim they filed with their boss or their employer’s insurance company.
• Any documents you received from the insurance company handling your claim. Your employer has insurance for workers’ comp claims (or at least they better have it). Often, my clients have already been dealing with them before they hire me.
• Any claim number the insurer gave you. The insurance company will have their own internal workers’ comp claim numbers. They are usually very long and complicated. This will be the same claim number you used to get medical care paid for by the workers’ comp insurer.
• Contact information for any insurance adjuster who may be dealing with your case.
• Any medical reports you may have with you that relate to this injury. Maybe the doctor gave you a disability slip, or the hospital gave you some papers when you left there. Just bring anything you think might be relevant. I can look it over and I will be able to tell.
• The names of all doctors or health care providers who treated you for your claim. This includes any diagnostic testing facilities you visited to get a test (like an MRI or CT scan). We do have to order your medical records, so we at least have to know where you went and who you saw for health care related to your workers’ comp claim.
• Your employer’s name, address & phone number.
• Your hourly rate of pay, or your salary. We have to figure out your “average weekly wage” when we meet. Ideally, you would have your pay stubs for the 14 weeks prior to the date you were injured. Bring them ONLY if you keep them, or have access to them. Most people don’t keep these around, even if they do get physical copies. So don’t worry about it. We can figure this out later so don’t stress if you don’t have this or you don’t know it.
• Your Social Security Number (which you probably know by heart anyway). I do need this when we file your claim online with the Maryland Workers’ Comp Commission.

Again, you don’t have to bring these things with you. It just makes things easier for us if you do. All we really have to do is discuss your Maryland workers’ compensation claim and the facts of your particular case.

Next Steps

Want to know more? Discover what you need to know about workers’ compensation in Maryland. Click here to see our Free Legal Guide to Maryland Workers’ Compensation and get answers to your questions today. Know your options. Be informed. Protect yourself.

Need a workers’ compensation attorney? Please contact us for a consultation today if you need an experienced workers’ compensation lawyer in Waldorf and Lexington Park for your legal case.

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Author: This content was written and approved by Tucker Clagett, an attorney at Southern Maryland Law – Andrews, Bongar, Gormley & Clagett.