Can an Employee Receive Workers’ Compensation for Emotional Distress?

Workers' Compensation Lawyers 317-881-2700

Workers’ Compensation Lawyers 317-881-2700

Sometimes work can get a little overwhelming, and other times, it can be down-right stressful. Work-related stress can come from deadline pressures, pressure to perform, too much workload, too many working hours, co-worker confrontations, and much more. But can an employee receive workers’ compensation benefits for anxiety and stress if their emotional and mental issues are rooted from their job? The answer could be yes, but not only is it a very challenging case to pursue, it depends on several factors; including where the person lives, where they work, their job description and duties, how the harm came to be, and much more.

Continue reading to learn more about workers’ compensation, and how a person can be eligible for such benefits under various circumstances.

Workers’ Compensation for Stress

There are several steps in determining if an employee is eligible for compensation as a result of work-related anxiety and stress. You see, some states recognize stress and anxiety as a basis for workers’ compensation, and many others do not. In the situation that an employee lives in a state where this type of injury is recognized, and they wish to pursue workers’ compensation, they will have the burden of proving that their injuries were a direct result of their work. But this isn’t the first step. In fact, this step comes much later in the legal process.

First, an employee must hire an experience work place injury lawyer that specializes in workers’ compensation law. They can provide legal guidance and navigate a lawsuit in a client’s best interest. Next, the employee must consider whether or not a workers’ comp lawsuit is worth it. If the amount of compensation they are eligible to receive is underwhelming, it may not be worth the time, energy, and stigma that goes along with filing a claim against the company they work for.

The Challenge

The common problem that arises with these kinds of lawsuits is that emotional and mental distress is harder to document and prove in contrast to physical injuries. However, as emotional distress and anxiety grows, it is wise for the employee to seek therapeutic treatment as a means of recovery and documentation of their injuries. Therapeutic treatment can include psychiatric counseling, medication, physical therapy, and more.

If these treatments do not work, then perhaps additional compensation is required for the employee to treat their injuries appropriately. Also, it is common for employees that have suffered a serious physical injury or trauma to experience subsequent stress and anxiety, in which case, additional compensation and rest would be honored by the company.

Indianapolis Workers’ Compensation Lawyers

Personal Injury Lawyers 317-881-2700

Personal Injury Lawyers 317-881-2700

Call Craven, Hoover, and Blazek P.C. at 317-881-2700 if you need an experienced workers’ compensation lawyer in Indianapolis, Indiana. Our seasoned personal injury lawyers are eager to recover the full and fair amount of compensation you deserve after being seriously injured at work. Recover for damages and losses, including medical expenses, hospital bills, pain, suffering, lost wages, and more.

Call The Law Office of Craven, Hoover, and Blazek P.C. After a Car Accident

If you are injured in a car accident, our seasoned personal injury lawyers will work around the clock to ensure your settlement coverage is fair. Although we aim to settle out of court, we are full-prepared to take your case to court if the insurance company doesn’t offer a full and fair settlement.

Car Accident Attorneys 317-881-2700

Car Accident Attorneys 317-881-2700


The Law Office of Craven, Hoover, and Blazek P.C. is a personal injury law firm that specializes in car accident injury claims. After being injured in a car accident, it is important to protect yourself with immediate medical care, as well as, legal assistance. Insurance companies are only interested in paying out the smallest amount of compensation, and will look for any way to blame the accident on you.

When you are hurt in a car accident, bills pile up and wages go lost. Time of work, hospital bills, medical expenses, car repair costs, and more can add a great deal of emotional stress, and can even slow your recovery. Our personal injury lawyers work hard to ensure your insurance company, or the opposing party’s insurance, pays out a settlement that fully covers your losses and more.

There are Never Any Upfront Lawyer Fees

We offer free initial consultations, so there is never any out of pocket obligation to discuss your case with a licensed accident attorney. Furthermore, our law firm works on a contingency fee basis. This means that we only collect our lawyer fees if we recover a settlement for you. You do not pay us a single dime, up front! This puts your mind at ease, and gives you confidence knowing that we don’t get paid unless you do. O

ur scheduling process is very flexible, and we can sit down with you any time during the regular business week, during regular business hours. Call Monday through Friday, 8am to 5pm, and speak with a friendly and professional legal representative who can give you all the information you need to get started with our claim.

Indianapolis Car Accident Attorneys You Can Trust

Indianapolis Personal Injury Lawyers 317-881-2700

Indianapolis Personal Injury Lawyers 317-881-2700

Call The Law office of Craven, Hoover, and Blazek P.C. at 317-881-2700 to file a car accident injury claim in Indianapolis, Indiana. Our seasoned personal injury lawyers are eager to recover the complete and just compensation you deserve. We offer free initial consultations and never collect attorney fees unless we recover for you. Call 317-881-2700 to schedule a time with a licensed Indianapolis car accident attorney, today.

4 Reasons Why Many People Avoid Taking Their Claim to Trial

If you are not pleased with the settlement offered to you, it is possible to take your claim to trial. However, there are some good reasons why many people avoid this route, and choose to settle out of court instead. Continue reading to learn the top 4 reasons why you may not want to take your personal injury claim to trial.

Personal Injury Lawyers 317-881-2700

Personal Injury Lawyers 317-881-2700


There are various factors that influence the outcome of a settlement. Whether a claim is settled out of court or goes to trial depends on many details of a particular case. For most plaintiffs, a personal injury lawyer assists with this part of the process. They are prepared to go to court for their clients, but do everything in their power to avoid it and settle out of court instead. There are many reasons for this strategy, but the top four most common reasons why plaintiffs avoid trial is due to 1) the possibility of losing, 2) the additional legal costs, 3) postponement of compensation, and 4) the possibility of multiple appeals.

You Might Lose

The possibility of losing may be the number one reason why many people prefer to settle out of court, both plaintiffs and defendants. If you disagree on a settlement, there is the inherent risk of losing your chance at any amount of compensation by choosing to take it to trial. Likewise, defendants are at risk of having to pay out much more than they could have if they had offered a better settlement before the claim went to trial.

Added Legal Costs

When clients choose to deny the settlement offered by the opposing party, and choose to take their claim to trial, there will indeed be more out-of-pocket legal costs. Although personal injury lawyers usually work on a contingency-fee basis, clients are still obligated to pay all other legal costs, such as filing fees, court costs, expert testimonies, and more. If you go to trial, you can expect to continue paying these additional fees.

Postponed Compensation

Many people are turned off by the idea of taking their claim to trial because their payment of compensation will be delayed. By accepting the settlement offered, clients can immediately receive their money and pay off their outstanding debts that accumulated as a result of their accident. Also, many people cannot afford to take their claim to trial for the reason of postponed compensation and added legal costs.

Dealing With Appeals

By accepting a settlement out of court, a binding contract between both parties guarantees closure to the case. However, if you take your claim to court, not only is there a chance you can lose, if you win, you could get stuck dealing with a lengthy appeals process. This can get quite expensive, and sometimes, people simply run out of money to continue fighting appeal after appeal.

If You Must Go To Trial…

Sometimes, there is simply no other option than to take your claim to trial. In this case, you would need to make sure you have an experienced and qualified personal injury lawyer on your side, working around the clock to ensure you receive a full and fair settlement.

Indianapolis Personal Injury Lawyers

Personal Injury Law Firm 317-881-2700

Personal Injury Law Firm
317-881-2700

Call Craven, Hoover, and Blazek P.C. at 317-881-2700 to schedule a free initial consultation with a seasoned personal injury lawyer in Indianapolis, Indiana. We work around the clock to make sure we recover the full and fair compensation you deserve after sustaining serious injuries in an accident that was not your fault. Call 317-881-2700 to schedule a free initial consultation with an experienced Indianapolis personal injury lawyer, today.

Common Fee Arrangements for Legal Representation

Understanding the framework for lawyer fees is an important part of preparing for legal representation. Learn how many lawyers charge for their services, and what to expect in terms of total out-of-pocket costs.

Personal Injury Law Firm  317-881-2700

Personal Injury Law Firm
317-881-2700

There are several different areas of law, both on state and federal levels. Accordingly, there are several different types of legal counselors who specialize in a particular type of practice. For instance, there are personal injury lawyers, divorce lawyers, criminal defense lawyers, public defenders, bankruptcy lawyers, immigration lawyers, and much more. Depending on the industry and the private preferences of the law firm, the type of fee arrangement they offer clients will vary.

Continue reading to learn some of the most common fee arrangements for lawyers, and how much your case will likely cost you.

Lawyers’ Fees

Contingency Fees. This is a common fee arrangement used among personal injury law firms. Under a contingency-fee basis, a client does not pay anything upfront in terms of lawyers’ fees. They may, however, have to pay for court and lawsuit related fees, such as court costs, witness testimonies, expert panelists, filing fees, and more. As for paying the lawyers, clients only have to pay if a settlement is recovered for them. If a settlement is recovered, the personal injury lawyers will collect a set percentage (usually 1/3 of total amount) that was previously agreed upon in the contract signed by the client. The larger the settlement, the more money the law firm makes.

Hourly Fees. This is the most common fee arrangement used among lawyers in most other fields of law. Under an hourly fee arrangement, clients agree upon an hourly rate presented by the lawyer at their initial consultation. From there, any time and work that the lawyer puts into the case is billed to the client. This can include phone calls, emails, document filing, and more. This is a very expensive fee arrangement, with common rates ranging between $200 and $300 per hour.

Flat Fees. Flat rate fees are generally used by law firms that deal with simple and direct cases. This may include divorce lawyers, bankruptcy lawyers, and lawyers who deal in wills, notaries, and similar legal services. In addition to the flat fee charged by the lawyer, clients may also be responsible for paying filing fees, court costs, and any other related fees surrounding their claim.

Retainers. Retainers are not necessarily a fee arrangement, but more so an additional fee responsibility to a fee arrangement. Many lawyers who charge hourly or flat rate fees may ask clients to pay a retainer as well. This is an upfront payment made to the lawyer as a sign of good faith that the clients are capable and willing to pay. They are also used to help jump start the financing of the case, including witnesses, investigations, and more. Lawyers often put retainers in a special trust account, and deduct their costs from them as they work on the case. Retainers are nonrefundable unless a court finds a retainer “unreasonable.”

Free Legal Representation

If a person is charged with a misdemeanor crime punishable by jail time, or a felony offense, the 6th Amendment in the United States Constitution guarantees the right to legal assistance. So if a defendant cannot afford to hire a lawyer, a court will provide one for them, free of charge. These lawyers are licensed and certified counselors referred to as public defenders. The state pays for the public defense, but defendants will still be responsible for paying additional court costs and legal fees, especially of they are convicted.

Indianapolis Personal Injury Lawyers

Indianapolis Personal Injury Lawyers 317-881-2700

Indianapolis Personal Injury Lawyers 317-881-2700

Call The Law office of Craven, Hoover, and Blazek P.C. at 317-881-2700 to file a personal injury claim in Indianapolis, Indiana. Our seasoned personal injury lawyers are eager to recover the full and fair compensation you deserve. Not only does our law firm offer free consultations, we never collect lawyer fees unless we prevail for you! Call 317-881-2700 to schedule a time with a licensed Indianapolis accident attorney, today.