There are few personality traits I find less appealing than that of a “yes man.” You know the people who always agree with you or someone else. You see it a lot with certain politicians where people around them are afraid to speak honestly and just agree with everything and kiss ass. They do this even when they privately feel differently.
Some Illinois work comp attorneys can be yes men or yes women. These are the types of lawyers who will tell you what you want to hear because they do not want to have “hard” conversations or do not know how to give advice. Sometimes they are afraid of losing a client. Other times they do not know what they are doing or do not care.
This issue came up recently when I received a call from a guy who had questions about attorney fees and Illinois work comp settlements. We discussed the facts and I learned that there was not even a settlement offer, yet, but his attorney was pursuing one.
As we discussed it further, this worker has a15 pound lifting restriction that his employer can not accommodate and he has been receiving weekly checks for two years until recently. He also has not finished with his medical care and it is anticipated that he will have to treat for at least six months more.
He has stopped receiving checks because he missed an IME appointment. That was two months ago and he only missed because he was in the hospital with another issue. He had let his lawyer know this and the lawyer “forgot” to call the insurance company. They used this as a basis to cut off his benefits until he attends a re-scheduled IME which is supposed to be soon.
Because he has been without pay, he asked his attorney to settle the case and the lawyer said he would try to do that.
Red Flags All Over This Case
There are so many red flags from this lawyer. The IME mistake is one as is the fact that he could not or did not get the issue corrected after. You can not blow off an IME, but being in the hospital is a valid excuse for missing it and the benefits should not have been cut off.
The biggest red flag is this lawyer saying that he would try to settle the case. That is a classic “yes man” move. The reality is that it would be a terrible idea to settle now. If the client settled, they would likely cost themselves tens if not hundreds of thousands of dollars.
The attorney had a duty to have the “hard” conversation of explaining why settling now would be a bad idea. They should make clear that they can not prove the maximum worth of the case at this time and that the client would miss out on the insurance company paying for the next six months of medical care. The client might not want to hear it, but the lawyer should have made clear that settling was not in their best interests.
I had never heard of this lawyer so I looked them up. Their website talked about work comp, but also bankruptcy, criminal defense, real estate and other areas of law. In other words, they are not focused on work injury cases. They are a general practice law firm.
Just like you would not want a doctor for a serious injury who does not specialize in the care you need, if you have a major work injury, you need an attorney who is handling Illinois work comp cases all day every day.
That is not to say that there are not bad attorneys who do just work comp. There clearly are. But they are more likely to give you a better chance of winning and not being afraid to tell you the truth. And we can certainly make sure you end up with one who will care about you and the results of your case.
If you would like a free case review, please call us any time at 312-346-5578. We cover all of Illinois.