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Workers’ Compensation Attorneys: Rhode Island’s Best

Workers’ compensation provides medical and wage benefits to people who are injured or become ill at work. While coverage by employers is a state mandate, wages and other benefits can vary. In general, insurance represents a social contract between management and labor. It protects workers from the loss of livelihood and management from civil suits if workers are injured on the job. But be advised: policy benefits and protections have limitations. When exceptions, arise worker compensation cases may end up in court. If that happens, you’ll need an experienced attorney to handle the contentious legal wrangling between you and your employer.

Workers’ compensation insurance in Rhode Island is taken very seriously. It not only covers workers employed by companies but sometimes extends to contract workers serving in that independent capacity. Businesses failing to provide worker compensation coverage can face severe and costly repercussions, including payment of claims out of pocket, fines, and possible imprisonment. They can also lose the right to conduct business in the state.

How to File a Worker Compensation Claim

  • The injured parties must visit a healthcare professional immediately so a doctor can provide medical reports to support any claims.
  • Employees then begin the claims filing process, being sure to include any state-mandated paperwork or forms.
  • Once the claims are approved, the recipient will receive their compensation payments and can return to work when they feel ready or when a physician has cleared them for service.

Worker compensation forms should be provided by the company or can be found online. While forms are self-explanatory, having an attorney help with their filling out and filing may avoid payment delays. That all sounds straightforward, right? The fact is many cases do not go smoothly. Employers may challenge claims. When that happens, you need an experienced work comp lawyer on your side.

When Do Attorneys Get Involved?

Depending on your needs, you may be entitled to medical compensation, which employers resist. This includes:

  • Hospitalization
  • Surgery
  • Rehabilitative care
  • Prescription medications
  • Vocational rehabilitation services
  • Long-term care

When you retain Calvino Law Associates, we will:

  • Make sure you get the medical treatment needed
  • Make sure you are reimbursed for out-of-pocket expenses for treatment and medication
  • Negotiate settlements and maximize the compensation
  • File appeals when judgments go against you.

Just because your employer carries workers’ comp insurance does not mean their lawyer won’t try to minimize the payout. We help you maximize benefit payouts by offering detailed advice on the proper steps to take to file an effective claim or appeal. Our assistance in gathering all necessary information, including medical records, accident and incident reports, and medical opinions, is critical to a successful claim.

Claim Appeals

Common reasons why claims are denied include:

  • Failure to notify your employer of your condition within thirty days
  • The insurer believes your injuries do not impact your ability to work
  • The claimant has a pre-existing condition
  • Lack of supporting medical documentation
  • Committing a crime at the time of your injury
  • Being under the influence of drugs or alcohol when injured
  • Violating your company’s code of conduct
  • Errors in paperwork filing
  • Being under the influence of drugs and alcohol when injured

The Calvino Law Associates Promise

Whatever the reason, Calvino Law Associates thoroughly reviews the details of your case and will fight to overturn claim denials and get you the payment you deserve. Call us at (401) 205-3733 or use our online contact form. We serve Providence, North Kingstown, and the surrounding areas in Rhode Island.

Get the legal ball rolling toward getting you the money you deserve, the money to which you are legally entitled. FIGHT BACK. CALL JACK!

Calvino Law Ahttps://www.calvinolaw.com/≥ sociates

373 Elmwood Ave.

Providence, RI 02907

(401) 205-3733

Find The Best Personal Injury Attorney in Providence, RI

Personal injury comes in a lot of different forms. If you get injured—physically or mentally—you have a right to compensation. Don’t let anyone tell you that you are not. However, receiving the monetary damages you deserve depends on the lawyer who handles your case. Taking cases to court can be highly stressful, not to mention confusing. Without the proper legal representation, you are as likely to lose the judgment as you are to receive inadequate monetary compensation even if you “win.” Our advice is to never put your personal injury fortunes in the hands of anyone but the most qualified personal injury attorney…ever.

Calvino Law Associates are the go-to legal experts in personal injury. John Calvino and staff have helped thousands of clients in Rhode Island and Southern New England. For us, personal injury law is not a sideline but a focus. Our experienced attorneys are dedicated to providing the best legal advice to get you the maximum payout for your injuries. You can count on it!

Personal injury cases represent a good portion of those filed in civil court. Personal injury attorneys deal with a wide variety of cases from injuries resulting from the actions of others. The types of personal injuries can be a result of a variety of situations.

Basic Types of Personal Injury Cases

Examples of personal injury cases include:

  • Motor Vehicle Accidents
  • Medical Malpractice 
  • Wrongful Death 
  • Workplace Accident 
  • Premises Liability 
  • Products Liability

What To Look for in a Personal Injury Attorney

There are several traits an excellent attorney will have, including:

  • A good listener. If your attorney doesn’t seem interested in what you have to say, you’re probably getting “one-size-fits-all” representation.
  • Responsive. When you call to check on things, are they hard to contact or fail to respond promptly?
  • Thorough. When you get to court, is your lawyer missing important information and documents?
  • Assertive. The person representing you should be a tough, take-charge type adept at winning personal injury cases.
  • Competent. The attorney should be well-versed in Rhode Island and Southern New England laws. Every district has its rules and regulations. Make sure your lawyer is familiar with them.
  • Courtroom savvy. Not all lawyers do well in the courtroom. Some may be very familiar with the law and quite capable but do not present themselves as convincing when arguing a case.
  • Respected by peers. Lawyers are a tight-knit group of professionals. Ask around and see what other lawyers think of your attorney. Better yet, check and see how many cases they have won.
  • Caring. It may sound inappropriate when discussing legal matters, but you want the person representing you to be sensitive to your injuries and the hardship they have caused you or your family.

The Calvino Law Associates Promise

If you’ve been injured in any way or ended up on the wrong end of a situation caused by others, you need to come to talk to us. Too many injuries go unreported and leave their victims without the means to support themselves or their families. You deserve compensation. Calvino Law Associates are committed to fighting for you. If you’ve been injured, don’t know where to turn, and live in Providence, North Kingstown, or the surrounding areas in Rhode Island, call us at (401) 205-3733 or use our online contact form.

Get the legal ball rolling toward getting you the money you deserve, the money to which you are legally entitled. FIGHT BACK. CALL JACK!

Calvino Law Associates

373 Elmwood Ave.

Providence, RI 02907

(401) 205-3733

Injured at Work? Things to Consider When Seeking Workers Compensation

Accidents have the potential to affect your life permanently. From respiratory exposure to back and head injuries, it is vital that you get the medical attention you need in order to recover from the injuries that you’ve incurred. But how will you manage to afford all these medical bills?

North Kingstown, as well as the rest of Rhode Island, has a mandated Workers Compensation Act to cover medical expenses and 75% of worker’s base pay for weekly compensation. Under this no-fault system, insurance companies will pay for benefits up to thirteen weeks without accepting legal liability for the injury under the Non-Prejudicial Agreement. If the insurance company chooses this, they will stop paying for your medical bills unless you do something about it. With this, hiring a successful and experienced worker’s compensation attorney is crucial.

To contest the Non-Prejudicial Agreement, you will need to file a worker’s compensation claim in order to set up other settlements with the insurance company to continue receiving compensation. For instance, the Memorandum of Agreement is when the insurance company accepts liability for the injury and will continue to pay for medical expenses and compensation.

Are you able to sue an individual or company for negligence while receiving worker’s compensation? Unfortunately, no. The Workers Compensation Act is a no-fault system, essentially stating that you will receive compensation no matter whose fault it is. However, if this no-fault system does not work for your particular situation, a North Kingstown worker’s compensation attorney can help you file a negligence claim. With this, if you’re successful, the insurance company will pay for medical expenses, pain and suffering, and lost wages that occurred as a result of the injury. Conversely, the insurance company will then have a right to receive reimbursement from any workers compensation that has already been paid out to you.

Despite the difficulties involved in getting injured at work, there are a variety of options to ensure that you are able to get your life back.

What to do with Uninsured Motorist Claims in Providence

One moment you’re driving, the second, your car is totaled. Car accidents are stressful because, in addition to everything else you have going on with your life, you now have to deal with any injuries you or your passengers may have sustained as well as getting the car repaired. After both the other driver and you pull over to the side of the road, you prepare to exchange information only to realize that the other driver does not have insurance – leaving you to deal with the bills that must be paid.

 

You do have options aside from paying hefty fees. In Providence, insurance companies have “uninsured motorist coverage” to protect you so you can be compensated if you have uninsured motorist claims. Also, if the other driver was underinsured, this same policy applies to cover the remaining bills that you may have. Of course, this does not mean that insurance companies will hand you all the money that you need without a fight.

 

How do you deal with the insurance companies? One, don’t talk to the insurance adjuster without consulting an uninsured motorist claims attorney. Insurance companies want to be able to record you saying that the injuries that you incurred aren’t as severe as you claim, as well as get you to agree with a compensation number without letting you know all the facts. Remember only to say what you can provide to the courts with documentation. You and your attorney will need to provide evidence of police reports, witnesses, medical bills, and much more to make an argument convincing enough to receive the compensation that you need. It might seem impossible to deal with a trial when you are trying to keep your life together, but keep in mind that you are entitled to a 12% interest rate per year from the insurance companies, after the date of the accident, so that the insurance companies will not try to stall the trial.

 

With a Providence uninsured motorist claims attorney, you do have options to get the support you need.

Unemployment Appeals Claim: How to Get the Support You Deserve

Finding yourself unemployed is exceptionally stressful when you have to consider your and your family’s future. If your unemployment claim is denied – these kinds of stresses intensify. Suddenly, you realize that you will need to fight for the livelihood of yourself and your loved ones.

There are many reasons why an unemployment claim can be denied in North Kingston including insufficient earnings, voluntarily separation, discharge for misconduct, and refusing suitable work. Sometimes employers will say that you quit voluntarily when you didn’t. In these cases, having an unemployment appeals claim attorney is exceedingly important.

First, you need to file an unemployment compensation appeal within fifteen days of the initial decision to the Department of Labor and Training either my mail, fax, or online. With this, you will then be able to schedule a hearing and have an ability to prove that you are entitled to those unemployment benefits.

One of the most crucial factors in getting unemployment compensation is to gather every possible piece of evidence that shows you meet the requirements to receive the benefits. The type of evidence will depend on the reason that you were denied initially. Some examples are e-mail correspondence, witnesses, documentation that shows you are looking for a job, and any other material that relates to the case. Not only do you want to indicate that you meet the requirements for unemployment compensation, but that you have been looking for a job since the day you became unemployed. What this does is prove to the court that you should receive compensation from the first day of unemployment, instead of only after the appeal hearing.

Also, remember that unemployment compensation appeal will be a “de novo” hearing. What this means is that the Referee will conduct the hearing without bias towards the initial decision. You start with a clean slate. But keep in mind that any evidence you submitted to initially receive compensation will need to be brought again to the hearing.

With a North Kingstown unemployment appeals claim attorney, you’ll have the ability to get the finances you need to support you and your family.

Speeding Ticket Violations in North Kingstown: The Key to Avoiding a Conviction

Whether rushing to an appointment, to the doctor, or to the emergency room; when you are pulled over by a cop, you will still get a speeding ticket.  In most situations, admitting guilt by paying the ticket is the most convenient option to move on with your life.  But what if you already have a record and with this moving violation you are facing several hundred if not thousands of dollars in lost income, or even incarceration?

In those cases, you need a speeding violations attorney that will support you and fight your case.

Speeding ticket violations are considered offenses not because of the driving itself but the implicit harm it may cause to others. Speeding twenty miles over the speed limit, running a red light, hitting a pedestrian, and killing that pedestrian is the scenario that courts imagine when looking at the speeding ticket violation. With this in mind, courts justify penalties such as license suspension, license cancellation, reinstatement fees, DMV fines, and increased insurance rates. North Kingstown, as well as the rest of Rhode Island, doesn’t use a point system when keeping track of speeding ticket violations.

Instead, they keep track of every violation and, with each passing violation, give increasingly harsher penalties. First-time offenders can have a $50 fine with their driver’s license suspended. Even the minimal punishment can have a significant effect on the way you live.

The key to avoiding a conviction is to understand, with the help of an attorney, the laws that surround speeding ticket violations. If you have been charged with a first-time offense, your attorney may be able to negotiate a “good driving statute,” meaning that the judge will drop the speeding charges because of your record of good behavior.

With this, there are steps you can take when facing a speeding ticket violations charge. By understanding the possible repercussions as well as the law will enable you and your attorney to navigate the complexities of your trial.

How to Overcome the Loss of a Loved One: Wrongful Death in North Kingstown

Losing a loved one unexpectedly is one of the most traumatic events that a person can experience in their lifetime. It’s difficult to take care of yourself with both the emotional weight and the lifestyle adjustment. If your loved one’s death was caused by another’s willful act or negligence, you might be able to charge the perpetrator for wrongful death. Depending on the circumstances, whether the individual is convicted of the crime or not, you still can successfully win a wrongful death suit.

Whether court appointed or not, only an executor or administrator may take a wrongful death suit to court. If, after six months, there is no executor or administrator to represent you and your family, all of the potential beneficiaries can unite and file a wrongful death lawsuit. In North Kingstown, the list of possible beneficiaries is immediate and distant family, life partners, financial dependents, putative spouses, or anyone else who was affected financially by the death. With a North Kingstown attorney experienced in wrongful death cases, even minors can file and receive compensation from a wrongful death lawsuit.

There is a time limit within which you can file a wrongful death claim. You have three years to file. However, this does not necessarily mean three years after the date of death. If the cause indicating wrongful death is discovered at a later date, then the statute of limitations starts from that date.

Another aspect to consider when filing a wrongful death claim is that there is a distinction between suing for compensation for your loss and suing to punish the individual or entity that caused the death. In other words, there is a difference between compensatory and putative reasons for filing.  You will find more success in filing for compensation because not every case will allow suing for putative reasons.

The process of overcoming the death of a loved one takes time. In order to relieve some of the pressure of such a loss, and attain justice for your loved one, taking the rights steps in filing a wrongful death suit might be exactly what your family needs.

Slip and Fall Accidents: What You Need to Know

Broken bones, concussions, thoracic sprains – the injuries that stem from slip and fall accidents can have a serious physical and financial impact. If you are partially or fully disabled from this type of accident, how will you take care of yourself and your family? Aside from seeking immediate medical treatment, you also need to use legal means to protect yourself financially. You need financial compensation.

In the midst of the accident, it is difficult to determine all the factors that could have led to the slip and fall. To receive compensation from a slip and fall accident, you and your attorney need to comb through the case files thoroughly and collect all the evidence you can. You will need to prove two things with the evidence that you provide to the court: negligence and the severity of physical harm. By providing pictures of the scene of the accident, the court will be able to compare the premises with maintenance protocols in order to determine if there was negligence.  Pictures of the injury itself can be used as additional evidence to highlight the severity of the physical harm caused by the accident. Additionally, the court will take into account how your lifestyle has been changed by the incident. With this in mind, providing as much financial and medical information you can, will put you in the best light to receive financial compensation.

One obstacle you may have, and it should be attended to before the trial, is the possibility of the defense being able to use “comparative negligence.” Comparative negligence is where the court determines how much negligence or carelessness occurred on your part that led to the accident. If the defense is able to prove even a small fraction of fault to be yours, that percentage will be deducted from possible compensation you may receive.

Although experiencing a slip and fall accident can be both painful and terrifying, you are not alone. Following these tips, along with a Providence attorney who specializes in slip and fall accidents, and you will have the help you need to get the most out of your slip and fall accident.

Serious Injury Attorney: How to Get Compensation in Providence

It would seem that the more obvious the injury, the higher the chance of receiving compensation for it.  Lost wages from missed work, medical bills, pain and suffering are the obvious factors to consider when trying to receive compensation from an insurance company or the responsible party. Unfortunately, the courtroom can work more like a business than a room of justice – that’s why you need to be protected. Without the right support, your livelihood is at risk.

There are laws in Providence that allow the insurance companies a defense that consists of proving the negligence of another – referred to as comparative or “share” fault. What the defense will argue at trial is that you were negligent, even by a small percentage, before the accident occurred. Even if they can prove that you were even ten percent negligent, then you have already lost ten percent of the original compensation you would have received. For the seriously injured, ten percent can be the difference between comfortable living and barely getting by.

One thing can prevent the defense from successfully proving such accusations: evidence. Although it may seem obvious, the truth of the matter is that the more evidence you have, in comparison to opposing counsel, the more likely you will be able to get the compensation that your serious injury requires. Depending on the circumstances surrounding the accident, it can mean having an expert look at the item that caused your injury.  Being able to provide documentary evidence would allow the court to see just how dangerous the environment was where the injury occurred. If the accident was sudden, even getting eye-witness testimony will assist the court in understanding the negligence of the defendant and the necessity for you to receive proper compensation.

As you go through your trial, remember that the court is, at the end of the day, a business. The Providence serious injury attorney will negotiate and persuade the court to produce results that best suit you.

The Facts About Premises Liability in Providence

When you experience an accident, make sure you know exactly where you are and who is responsible for maintaining that location. Whether it’s a shopping mall, neighbor’s house, or a park? If the accident stemmed from the condition of the environment, then you may be able to seek compensation from the property owner.

Nearly all properties you may find yourself in, have an owner who is directly responsible for its maintenance and any incidents that take place on that property.  Failure to maintain the property can include: lead paint exposure, sidewalk or road defects, poor security measures, poorly lit staircases or hallways and exposed electric wiring.  Defective merchandise which the owner was aware of, unsecured animals resulting in such things as dog bites, prolonged exposure to asbestos leading to mesothelioma, etc. There are a lot of ways in which a property owner can fail to maintain their premise and place their visitors at risk of getting injured.

One obstacle that you need to consider before pressing charges is if there was any amount of negligence on your part that could have resulted in the accident. This can mean a number of things depending on the conditions that surrounded the accident. Mostly, defense attorneys will try to prove that you were partaking in unsafe activities that would have resulted in an accident regardless of if you were on the property or not. In Providence, this is called “comparative fault,” meaning that you will either receive reduced compensation or no compensation at all if the defense is able to prove that you were negligent at the time of the accident. This would include if you trespassed onto the property, meaning that the property owner did not give you the approval to be on the property in the first place and thus holds no responsibility for your injuries. Of course, if you were invited onto the property and were not sufficiently warned of the possible dangers on the property, then you will be eligible for compensation.

Having a Providence premise liability lawyer at your side will give you the best chance of receiving the most compensation possible.