Workers Comp Lawyer
$155,000 Union Laborer Workers Compensation Settlement
An installation and maintenance installer for a phone company was lifting and carrying a 28 foot ladder through trees in a wooded area to position it against a telephone pole. The ladder weighed, by claimant’s estimate, 90 pounds. He felt a pop and tearing sensation in his upper back. Medical testing revealed that he had a herniated disk in the neck.
A herniated disk in the neck can, because of the distribution of nerves throughout the body, cause pain in the neck, arms, or weakness in the legs. This may be manifested by sleep disturbances, swallowing or eating problems, and uncomfortable walking. Surgery, known as a “cervical fusion”, is often performed to remove the herniated disk and stabilize the neck with plates and screws. One of the potential complications of a fusion to repair a herniated disk is that since one level of the spine has been made rigid, this puts extra stress on the levels above and below the fusion site. If these other levels wear out prematurely because of the added stress, this is known as “adjacent segment disease”, and may require another fusion at the adjacent segment of the spine.
After surgery to repair the disk, claimant was offered a light duty desk job, but then relocated to another state. In addition to full payment of his medical expenses, the claimant received $16,000 in weekly disability benefits and a $155,000 workers compensation settlement.
