Compensation Claims - Legal Dictionary Accredited Personal Injury Specialist An accredited personal injury specialist is a lawyer who specialises in personal injury claims and has achieved accreditation for his expertise in this area from the NSW Law Society, the body that regulates lawyers and legal practice in NSW. In providing accreditation, the NSW Law Society is confirming, from assessments undertaken of the lawyer’s knowledge and expertise, that the personal injury lawyer is an expert in the field of personal injury law in NSW. Appraisal of Your Claim This means that we will discuss your claim with you and provide you with our advice as to whether we consider you do have a personal injury claim and that it is one worthwhile pursuing. Compensation Reference to compensation means we are referring to the amount of money (or damages as it is called in personal injury law terms), that you should receive to compensate you for your injuries and the expenses you have reasonably incurred and are likely to reasonably incur in the future, because of your injuries. Costs Costs or legal costs are a reference to the professional fees and outlays (also called disbursements) that are involved in pursuing (or defending) a workers compensation claim. Damages/Common Law Damages Damages or Common Law Damages means the money you receive to compensate you for your injuries in a personal injury claim. The amount of damages you receive depends on the extent of your injuries and the loss and expense you have incurred because of your injuries. Disbursements Disbursements or outlays as they are also known, are the expenses incurred in pursuing a Workers Compensation claim such as medical report fees, barrister fees, mediation fees, forensic accountant fees, search fees (registration searches, company searches, police report searches), safety expert fees, courier fees, court filing fees etc. Free Initial Consultation Free initial consultation means that we will discuss your claim with you and provide you with expert advice as to whether you do have a workers compensation claim and whether such claim is worthwhile pursuing. You will not be charged for this initial consult or for the legal advice provided to you during such consultation Lump Sum Compensation Lump Sum Compensation refers to the term given to a lump sum offered at the end of his workers' compensation claim because the worker has sustained a permanent impairment as a consequence of his workplace accident or injury. A worker must be very careful however when responding to any offer of lump sum compensation made by the workers' compensation insurer at the end of their workers' compensation claim, because, if the worker responds incorrectly to a lump sum offer, it can have disastrous results with the worker losing all rights to pursue a common law claim for damages for their work injuries. Lump sum offers made to workers at the end of a workers' compensation claim are usually quite minimal when compared to the compensation that is likely to be received should the worker pursue a Common Law claim for damages in relation to his work injury. The loss sustained to the worker should he fail to seek legal advice on this issue, can be very significant. It is therefore EXTREMELY IMPORTANT that an injured worker obtains legal advice when responding to any lump sum offer made by the workers' compensation insurer at the end of their workers' compensation claim. Motor Accident Claim In NSW if you are injured in a motor vehicle accident and the accident was caused or contributed to by the wrongful act or omission of another party, then you may be entitled to make a motor accident claim for compensation for your injuries and the loss and expense you have sustained as a result of those accident injuries. No Win No Fee 'No Win, No Fee' refers to an agreement between you and your lawyer, you are guaranteed not to have to pay any costs whatsoever unless your claim is completed successfully and you receive compensation. We provide you with a risk free way of pursuing your compensation claim without exposure to any legal costs until you receive your compensation entitlements. Permanent Impairment Permanent Impairment means the loss of a bodily function sustained because of an injury. Taking a person's normal whole body functioning as being at 100%, an assessment will be made by the medical specialist as to what percentage of functioning the injured person has lost because of their injury (eg. 10% loss of functioning = 10% permanent impairment). Medical specialists use special guidelines to calculate the percentage of lost functioning or impairment a person has permanently lost because of their injury, which have been specifically devised for this purpose, called the AMA Guides. Personal Injury Claim A personal injury claim is a claim for compensation or damages relating to injuries sustained in an accident. Personal injuries do not only mean physical injuries, but also include psychological or psychiatric injury sustained as a result of an accident. Professional Fees Professional fees are the fees charged for the legal services and professional expertise provided in pursuing a workers compensation injury claim. Public Liability Claim This is the term given to claims where a person is injured in a public place or whilst visiting private business premises or other property, and your injury is caused or contributed to by the wrongful or negligent act or omission of another. This could be slips, trips and falls, accidents at the football, park or public area. Dog attacks, boating accidents. Workers’ Compensation Claims A work injury damages claim is made when an injured worker sues their employer in court for damages due to negligence. Work injury damage claims were previously common Law. | 
