Congratulations to Edgar Romano, New President of Society of New York Workers’ Compensation Bar Association

Managing Partner Edgar Romano

On May 17th, Managing Partner Edgar Romano was installed as the new President of the Society of New York Workers’ Compensation Bar Association (NY WCBA). Prior to his installation as President, Edgar served as NY WCBA’s 1st Vice President.

The NY WCBA was established in 1945 as a bipartisan organization comprised of attorneys representing all parties to workers’ compensation claims: claimants, self-insured employers, third party administrators, insurance carriers, and others who are affiliated with the New York State Workers’ Compensation system. The purpose of the organization is to identify issues that affect the administration of the Workers’ Compensation Law and attempt to offer suggestions for the remediation of these issues in a fair and impartial manner. In addition, the Association is involved in educating persons unfamiliar with the complexities of the Workers’ Compensation Law.

The Association is also involved in fund raising for charity. This year represents the Association’s 17th annual golf and tennis fund raiser for pediatric cancer research on behalf of the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. Through the generosity of its members and sponsors, the Association has raised over $500,000 since the inception of its annual outing.

Congratulations from all of us!

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Veterans Can Be Eligible For Full Or Partial Disability Benefits

(U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Desiree N. Palacios)

Veteran’s disability is a monetary benefit that is paid to veterans who have disabilities incurred or aggravated during active service in the military. Benefits may also be awarded for post-service disabilities if the disability is deemed related or secondary to disabilities occurring during active service.

This tax-free benefit is paid monthly if the veteran is deemed to be at least 10% disabled. The amount of compensation is determined by the degree of disability from 10% to 100%.

Other eligibility requirements include the status of your discharge, duration of service, as well as the degree of your disability.

If you believe that yourself or a loved one should be entitled to Veterans Compensation Benefits, or if you believe you are more disabled than Veterans Affairs has previously determined, contact Pasternack, Tilker Ziegler, Walsh, Stanton & Romano, LLP for a free consultation.

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Social Security Disability – Know When To Submit Medical Records Before Your Hearing

The timeline for you or your attorney to submit evidence of your disability to the Social Security Administration (SSA) recently become much shorter.

In May of 2017, the SSA implemented a new rule on submitting evidence. If you want the judge to look at any new medical records, they must be submitted at least 5 business days before your hearing. If you miss the deadline, the judge can now legally ignore the new evidence, no matter how important it is.

Before this new rule, the SSA’s disability judges were required to consider all medical evidence of your disability before they could decide your case, no matter when it was submitted or where it came from. This burden was very high — the SSA was even required to try to take action to find proof on its own. Under the new 2017 rule, if your new evidence is important but wasn’t turned over at least 5 business days before the hearing, you may have to prove that there were some “unusual, unexpected, or unavoidable circumstances beyond your control [that] prevented you from informing [SSA] about or submitting the evidence earlier.”

Know your rights!  This new rule also means that Social Security has to give you at least 75-day notice before your hearing. Unfortunately, we law firm have also seen Social Security sending people forms asking them to waive their right to this notice. If you receive a form asking to waive your rights, consult with an attorney before signing anything. We are provide free consultations.

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Congratulations to Pasternack Tilker Attorneys Recognized As 2018 Super Lawyers

We are proud to congratulate each of Victor Pasternack, Jordan Ziegler, Kevin Walsh, Catherine Stanton, and Edgar Romano for being named to the New York Super Lawyers list as one of the top attorneys in New York for 2018. No more than 5 percent of the lawyers in the state are selected by Super Lawyers.

This is the 13th consecutive year Ziegler has been selected, the 12th consecutive selection for Stanton, the 10th for Pasternack, the 9th for Romano and the 5th for Walsh.

We are honored that so many of our attorneys have been a recurring presence on this prestigious list for over a decade.

Super Lawyers selects attorneys using a patented multiphase selection process. Peer nominations and evaluations are combined with independent research. Each candidate is evaluated on 12 indicators of peer recognition and professional achievement. Selections are made on an annual, state-by-state basis. The objective is to create a credible, comprehensive and diverse listing of outstanding attorneys that can be used as a resource for attorneys and consumers searching for legal counsel. The first Super Lawyers list was published in 1991.

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Injured? Don’t Wait To Report It

The New York Worker’s Compensation Law is a no-fault system that provides medical and monetary benefits to any worker injured while on the job. Though the threshold for establishing a worker’s compensation claim is not high compared to standards in other areas of the law, there are a few important things every injured worker should know. Claims can be rejected because too much time has passed (time-barred), so it’s important to report your injury to your employer and file a claim as soon as possible after the injury occurs.

Under New York law, an injured worker has two years after the date of their accident to file a claim with the Worker’s Compensation board. In the case of an occupational disease that is due to the nature of the job (like carpal tunnel syndrome), the worker has two years from the date that they knew or should have known that their injury was sustained in the course of employment. While two years may seem like a lot of time, many seemingly minor injuries can become much more serious down the line, so to protect yourself it’s important to file a claim as soon as possible after the injury occurs.

The law also requires that employers have adequate notice of the injury. For accidental injuries, the worker must notify their employer about the injury within thirty days of the accident. For an occupational disease, the time limit is relaxed to two years from the date that the worker knew or should have known that the condition was caused by their work activities. Adequate notice can either be oral or written, so even just telling your supervisor that you had an injury on the job is good enough. However, to prevent this from becoming an issue it’s best to fill out an accident report or to provide your employer with some form of written notice of your injury as soon as possible.

Though most claims will need to be reported and filed within these time frames, there are certain exceptions that may apply. If you have any questions about a work injury or how to properly file a claim, reach out to us for a free consultation.

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Don’t Go It Alone

An injured worker walked through my door the other day frustrated beyond belief. He had been representing himself on his compensation claim for his back injury. He thought he did not need a lawyer and could handle it himself.

The insurance company accepted the claim and paid this worker only a fraction of what he was actually entitled to, though that was not the issue the client wanted to discuss. He did not even realize that he had been short changed.

What he wanted to discuss was getting back surgery. His doctor requested a laminectomy, but the insurance company told the doctor and the injured worker that they were not going to authorize it or pay for it. This man had been suffering terrible back pain for nearly six months and his surgery was never scheduled.

The injured worker was shocked when I told him that the insurance company did not have to give authorization — this surgery was already authorized under the Board’s Medical Treatment Guidelines. The insurance company knew this of course, but seemingly played ignorant to avoid paying for the needed surgery.

When I then told him that he could not only have his surgery, but also had been paid less than half of the indemnity payments to which he was entitled, the gentleman shook his head in frustration and said, “I shouldn’t have done this alone.”

How right he was. The New York Workers Compensation system is extremely complicated. Insurance companies know the system well and often do not tell unrepresented injured workers details that matter, often while telling the injured worker that they are acting in their best interest.

Do not go it alone.  At Pasternack, Tilker, Ziegler, Walsh, Stanton, and Romano, with more than eight decades of experience in defending the rights of New Yorkers, we help clients get the justice they deserve.

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Injured Volunteer Firefighters And Ambulance Workers May Be Eligible For Benefits

New York workers are generally covered by the Workers’ Compensation Law, but there are special laws which cover volunteer first responders – firefighters and ambulance workers.

Closely aligned with the Workers’ Compensation Law are the Volunteer Firefighter Benefits Law (VFBL) and the Volunteer Ambulance Workers Benefit Law (VAWBL). As their titles suggest, these two laws protect people who volunteer in the potentially hazardous duties of fighting fires, responding to motor vehicle accidents and tending to those injured in a variety of circumstances. While not all firefighters and ambulance workers are unpaid, many areas outside the five boroughs of New York City and other smaller cities maintain volunteer forces to provide these indispensable services. Given the inherent danger involved, volunteers often suffer injury when “on duty”.

In the event of an injury, both laws provide wage replacement benefits and medical coverage. Also, there is a “built in” presumption of an earning capacity for volunteers; therefore, even if a volunteer is not otherwise employed, she or he may be entitled to benefits. In addition to physical injury, the laws cover such events as exposure to noxious fumes, smoke or chemicals and post-traumatic stress disorder.

The list of what entails an “injury in the line of firematic or ambulance worker duty” is extensive. These events include maintaining vehicles and participation in certain department-sanctioned events. We take pride in representing those who volunteer their efforts in the service of others, especially when those efforts can be fraught with danger.

In order to best insure that your rights are protected, be sure to contact our office for a no-cost consultation. And thank you for volunteering!

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Firm News: Edgar Romano Named Managing Partner; Matthew Funk Named Senior Partner

It is with great pleasure that we announce the promotions of two of our colleagues. They have, over decades, demonstrated hard work and dedication to injured workers, to their communities, to the practice of law, and to our firm.

Managing Partner Edgar N. Romano

Edgar Romano, formerly a Senior Partner, has been named the Managing Partner of Pasternack Tilker Ziegler Walsh Stanton & Romano, LLP. Mr. Romano litigates workers compensation claims, including cases involving occupational exposure, asbestos and industrial irritants.

His community involvement is extensive – he has lectured extensively to labor unions and medical providers, is a Past President of the Workers Injury Law and Advocacy Group, and is on the Board of Directors of the New York State Workers Compensation Bar Association.

Among is many passions, Mr. Romano is dedicated to helping those injured on September 11th and to help in this cause he serves on the Advisory Committee of the World Trade Center Medical Monitoring Program at Mt. Sinai Hospital and on the Advisory Board of the I.J. Selikoff Center for Occupational and Environmental Medicine.

 

Senior Partner Matthew Funk

Matthew Funk has been elevated from Partner to Senior Partner. He handles workers compensation cases for the firm. Mr. Funk is the current President of the  New York Trial Lawyers Association (NYSTLA) and the Co-Chair of the NYSTLA Workers’ Compensation Committee, a member of the Legislative Committee, No-Fault Committee and Labor Law Committee. Since 1999, he has written for the NYSTLA Decisions program and has lectured at the Decisions program on the topic of Workers’ Compensation.

Matthew serves on the Executive Board of the Injured Workers Bar Association, participating in online round table discussions regarding the rights of injured workers. He is a Workers Compensation Committee member of the New York Coalition for Occupational Safety and Health (NYCOSH). Matthew regularly lectures on the workers compensation law to various labor organizations. In 2017, Matthew was honored with a City & State Corporate Social Responsibility Award in the Law sector.

 

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