Michael J. Warner & Associates attorney Howard Zimmerle has been appointed to the Illinois Workers Compensation Section Council for 2009-2010. Mr. Zimmerle handles Illinois workers compensation cases as a large part of his daily duties, and is proud of the honor.

I wrote about this in my other blog. Essentially though, you can probably get a good idea what I was talking about just by reading the title.

(Howard Zimmerle is a personal injury and medical malpractice attorney in the Quad Cities).

is a potential trap for an unwary Iowa lawyer. I discuss it at my other blog.

Michael J. Warner & Associates attorney Howard Zimmerle will help judge the Iowa High School Mock Trial Competition in Davenport Iowa on March 7th, 2009. “I’m excited for this opportunity,” Zimmerle said. “I want to help these students have an enjoyable experience and learn some valuable skills in the process. The skills it takes to present a mock trial carry over into life far beyond the courtroom.”

Although Mr. Zimmerle has tried several cases in real life, has acted as an Arbitrator for the 14th Judicial District in Illinois, and participated in trial advocacy in law school, this will be his first time acting as a high school mock trial judge. “I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t at least a little nervous,” stated Zimmerle.

Iowa Courthouses will be closed for certain days this spring and early summer. Also, district clerk’s offices will close early on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I covered this in more detail at my other blog, here.

Workers Compensation cases are difficult for people. Not only are people injured, they typically miss work and don’t get paid what they normally do. The system that is designed to protect and compensate them - Workers Compensation - is confusing and time-consuming.

An overview of what to expect in a typical case might help:

In Illinois, workers compensation entitles people to three basic things: (1) payment for their time off of work  - called Temporary Total Disability, or TTD, (2) payment of all necessary and related medical expenses, and (3) compensation for disability. There are other things that come up in some cases, such as vocational rehabilitation, but those are things you can talk to your attorney about.

When you get hurt, you should tell your supervisor as soon as possible. Seek medical treatment if needed. Your employer gets to choose which doctors you go to, but you can request a second opinion if necessary. Your medical treatment should be paid by your employer, but bills are sometimes sent to your house. A good Illinois workers compensation lawyer can advise you on what to do if you get medical bills, and how to try to keep medical providers from bugging you if your employer doesn’t pay.

If you miss work, you should be paid for your time off. Unfortunately, you are only paid 2/3 of your average weekly wage while you are off. The exact calculation can be difficult at times, so an attorney can help determine what your average weekly wage is, and if your TTD payment should be different than the 2/3 amount (there are legally required maximums and minimums, for example). If you don’t get paid at all, an attorney may be able to help.

(to be continued…)

Howard Zimmerle gives attorneys some tips to resolve property damage claims after car accidents in his latest post here.

A how-to for all of the newbies out there.

Illinois attorneys have more power now.

Howard Zimmerle’s latest post, building off of recent psychological research.