Long Beach Office:
444 W. Ocean Blvd.,
Suite 400
Long Beach
California  90802
(562) 432-8421

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This portion of our website is meant for our current clients.  Feel free to read on, but do so knowing that the information is intended for them, and may not apply to you.

We're Here to Help

Suffering an injury at work can sometimes be a devastating experience.  It can turn one's world upside down.  One moment you are a hard working, independent and loyal employee.  Then after your injury, the future becomes uncertain and you wonder what is going to happen next.  The first thing you want is treatment for your injury and, just as important, the next question that pops into your mind is, "How am I going to make it without a paycheck?"

Suddenly, your mind is flooded with questions.  Which doctor should I see?  Who is going to pay for it?  How do I pay my bills?  What is going to happen to my job if I can't go back to work?  So forth and so on.  You now have a headache.  Welcome to the world of Workers' Compensation.
 

Don't Make This Mistake

We understand that there are many times during the course of your case that you become extremely frustrated and angry.  One of the biggest mistakes you can make is writing to the judge, the insurance company, to your doctor or employer.  These letters are then distributed to each party involved in your case.  They cannot help you and they often cause embarrassment to the case and to your position.  If you want to tell somebody something, tell us.

Help Us Help You

If you have to call us about a problem, there are some things you can do to help us obtain answers for you quickly:

• If your check is late - be sure to have the date your check was due, the date you received your last check, the amount of that check, and the time period it covered.
  
• If you are calling regarding your medical treatment - have the name of your doctor, when you last received treatment, and if you have any upcoming medical examinations.
  
• If you have received a letter - be sure to have that letter handy when you call.  Sometimes we have not received our copy yet!
  
• If you have a complex question - writing us a letter may be the best idea.  That way our file is documented and the attorney receives your information first hand.  Attorneys read their mail on a daily basis.
  
• Finally - trust our secretarial staff.  They have been trained to assist you.  Not giving information or insisting on speaking with the attorney will only delay the processing of your file.  They are on your side.  If you communicate clearly, then your needs can be clearly communicated to your attorney.  And in many cases, your questions can be answered directly.
   

CASH THE CHECK

We often get calls from our clients asking whether they should cash a check that they received from the insurance company or Social Security.  The general rule of thumb is that if you get a check and are uncertain if it is money that you are owed or if it looks like it is for the wrong amount, make two copies of the check and CASH IT.  Then, send one copy to your attorney with a note explaining why you are worried about the check and save a copy for your records.  Our office will then contact you and let you know what the check is for and whether it is for the right amount.  Ninety-nine percent of the time an insurance company will underpay a check rather than overpay.  It is very rare that our clients have to pay back money to an insurance company.

Never send a check to our office or to the insurance company unless you are told to by an attorney from our office.     
 

Mileage has been increased to $0.445 per mile from the previous $0.39 per mile. This is also a reminder to keep track of your mileage to and from all doctor's appointments, physical therapy appointments, depositions, and mileage incurred as a result of your participation in rehabilitation.  If you need mileage forms, please contact your secretary's voice mail and request them.
 

By Danny Polhamus

Many of our clients come to this office initially for representation on a workers' compensation claim. Sometimes, your impairment warrants filing of a Social Security Disability claim as well. Most of the time, our office will represent you on the Social Security case after examining the evidence with you.

It is very important to realize that Social Security does not care how you have become disabled, only that you are disabled. This differs from workers' compensation, where we are only considering the injury that is related to the workplace.

Many times, our clients will file the Social Security disability application and fail to bring to the attention of the attorney other medical problems they have that are not related to work. It is extremely important that we know about these other conditions as soon as you have filed your Social Security claim. That way, we can develop the record for Social Security and help gather and review any other medical records you might have. It could be that the non work-related medical problems are more significant than the work injury. Therefore, we may be able to win your Social Security case with medical records that have no relevance to your workers' compensation claim.

Many of you will have an attorney in our office handling your workers' compensation case and another attorney (either in our office or an attorney in another office) representing you on your Social Security case. If that occurs, make sure to give your Social Security attorney information relating to all of your medical problems. That would include the names and addresses of all your doctors as well as a list of medications that have been prescribed for you.

If we know about all your medical problems from the beginning, we can sometimes shorten the delay in receiving a favorable Social Security decision.