Why are workers compensation hearing allowed to go on for years?

[tanishia]

When an attorney admits it was the companies fault for an employee being injured, why is the attorney for workers compensation allowed to carry the hearing all the way to the supreme court when they admitted they are in the wrong?

[kenway]

Most likely he or she would get disbarred for doing so.

The simple reason why these kinds of cases get dragged out for years is because the company doesn't want to pay and they're hoping that by dragging it out the problem may just go away because the plaintiff will not continue to pursue it. That's the real world reason why it happens. As to why it's allowed to happen, it's because the system allows it. There are two parties in every dispute and each party has the right to protect its interests and present a complete case. In these situations, it can be really unfair to the little guy who was hurt, but larger companies have the money to wait them out and to use attorneys who know how to work the system.

Of course, there have been many instances in which people have filed false claims, and that has ultimately helped create precedent that can favor a company. But the bottom line is that it all comes down to who has the better attorneys, and in most cases that will not be the person who was injured.

[choviohoya]

The workers comp system was set up to take fault out of the compensation issues. All you need to do is show an on-the-job injury (with some possible exclusions) and you are compensated. The issues before the judge then amount to appropriate medical treatment, extent of injury, and some technical issues.

It is possible that the compensation carrier (insurance company) is contesting the extent of your injuries or whether treatment requested is appropriate. And each time new treatment comes up, the carrier is entitled to a new hearing limited to that subject.

[darrick34]

Our court system is based on law and precedents
(not "justice")
the law provides for a system of appeals to
resolve issues which at least one of the parties feels
was not properly resolved by a lower court.

While a company may be at fault,
compensation for damages are also being determined
as well as future precedents possibly being set.
Nuances of each case's basis and outcome
determine the outcome of not only that case but future cases as well.
Besides "fault" & "compensation" there are often subtler future issues
being determined as well.
----------
Workers compensation claimant should petition
either the lower or appeals court for temporary relief,
that they at least be paid an installment of the damages settlement
while the on-going appeals are still pending.

[shashank]

It's usually the company's attorney's who drag the case out! Hoping the injured person would give up and disappear, OR decide to go on unemployment, which would nullify the law suit! This happened to me, only I didn't opt for the unemployment! Mine went on for four years and three attorneys before I finally got it settled! It was the Company's attorneys who screwed up by lying to the Court! RIGHT in front of the Judge!! The Lord only knows how much longer it would have gone on if that hadn't happened! The Judge was so mad at them, he gave them two weeks to get their act together, or, right or wrong, I was going to win my case!!! You are wondering about that lie!? They didn't show up at the appointed time and the excuse they gave the court was - they were cancelling the hearing because I was too sick to appear!! It just so happened, my son and I were standing right next to the judge and the District Attorney when the clerk told us!!! DUH!!! I burst into tears, but laughed all the way home!

[osmont]

So they don't have to pay out any money.

[ricard83]

So they don't have to pay out any money.

It could be any number of reasons. One that comes to mind is if they are claiming you had a preexisting condition that you are trying to claim on workers comp.

Without knowing the details of the case, it's hard to say why they are dragging it out. This would be something you need to talk with your lawyer about.