Akery Prevails in Difficult Workers' Comp Case

Attorney Benjamin W. Akery was recently able to secure a very large settlement for a roofer who was significantly injured while on the job.

On January 12, 2013, our client, who worked for a roofing company, fell approximately 10 feet off of a roof resulting in significant spinal injuries requiring emergency spinal surgery. After the fall, the injured worker’s direct employer and general contractors on the jobsite all tried to deny that he was one of their employees. The employer actually refused to provide any medical treatment or weekly disability benefits when the accident first happened.

The injured worker retained the Steinberg Law Firm and attorney Akery took his case to court. At court they prevailed and the South Carolina Workers’ Compensation Commissioner found that he was indeed an employee of the roofing subcontractor. He was then awarded medical benefits and weekly compensation benefits.

Throughout the course of the trial, our client’s employer presented fraudulent documents and as a result, the Commissioner reported them to the insurance fraud division of the Attorney General’s office.

Ultimately, attorney Akery was able to obtain a settlement for the value of a lifetime benefits award for incomplete paraplegia, which is impairment of the lower extremities. During mediation, Akery also fought to obtain an amount for future medical treatment for our client, which he did.

The total settlement amount was $630,000.00 for our client proving that with the right attorney, employers cannot get away with bullying their employees when on the job accidents occur.