Gelman: The Case for Increased Counsel Fees

Thursday, April 6, 2023 | 0

Long-overdue legislation has been introduced in the New Jersey Assembly to increase workers' compensation counsel fees for petitioners and claimants' attorneys.

Jon L. Gelman

The workers' compensation law field has historically been considered a legal specialty that needs to be improved in the quality of representation available to injured workers. It has hindered the ability of injured workers to seek adequate recoveries in the administrative law system.

A bill, A5353, to increase attorney fees in workers' compensation cases, was introduced by Assemblyman Anthony S. Verrelli to raise counsel fees to 25% from a statutory limit of 20% imposed in 1911.

Workers' compensation is a system of insurance that provides wage replacement and medical benefits to employees who are injured in the course of their employment. The system is designed to ensure that injured workers receive prompt and fair compensation, regardless of who is at fault for the injury.

Workers' compensation claims can be complex and time-consuming, and injured workers often face an uphill battle in obtaining the benefits they deserve. This is where workers' compensation attorneys play a vital role. Workers' compensation attorneys represent injured workers in their claims against their employers or their employers' insurance companies. They help injured workers navigate the complex workers' compensation system and fight for the benefits they are entitled to.

Employers have the monetary resources to hire large and expensive law firms to defend work-related claims. They can expend large sums of money on unlimited discovery resources, including hiring medical experts and medical-legal research.

Increasing counsel fees for workers' compensation attorneys would improve the quality and depth of representation available for injured workers in several ways. First, it would attract more experienced and qualified attorneys to the workers' compensation law field. Many workers' compensation attorneys are solo practitioners working in small firms. They often need more resources, time and attention to handle complex workers' compensation cases. Increasing counsel fees would allow workers' compensation attorneys to hire more staff and invest in technology that would help them better serve their clients.

Second, increasing counsel fees would allow workers' compensation attorneys to spend more time on each case. Currently, many workers' compensation attorneys are forced to handle a high volume of cases to make a living. This can lead to mistakes and missed opportunities. Increasing counsel fees would allow workers' compensation attorneys to spend more time on each case, leading to better outcomes for injured workers.

Third, increasing counsel fees would make it more affordable for injured workers to hire an attorney to invest in the discovery and trial preparation required to prosecute a workers’ compensation case. Currently, most injured workers cannot afford to advance the discovery costs essential in complex workers’ compensation claims. Increasing counsel fees would make it more affordable for injured workers to hire an attorney, giving them a better chance of success in their claims.

Increasing counsel fees for workers' compensation attorneys would improve the quality of representation available for injured workers. It would attract more experienced and qualified attorneys to the workers' compensation law field, allow workers' compensation attorneys to spend more time on each case and make it more affordable for injured workers to hire an attorney. 

Claimants' attorney Jon L. Gelman is the author of "New Jersey Workers’ Compensation Law" and co-author of the national treatise "Modern Workers’ Compensation Law." He is based in Wayne, New Jersey. This blog post is republished with permission.