Occupational Illness Solicitors - Injury Compensation Lawyers

LAWYER HELPLINE: 1800 339 958

Our occupational illness solicitors use the no win no fee scheme and compensation is paid in full. If you would like advice with no further obligation on occupational disease claim settlements from a specialist personal injury solicitor just use the helpline or complete and send the contact form. Our aim is to ensure that victims of industrial illness receive quality, competent legal advice at no cost.

Our personal injury lawyers will advise you about what is needed to establish liability. Generally speaking, if it can be proved on the balance of probabilities (the civil standard of proof) that somebody else was negligent and as a result of their negligence you have suffered injury or loss, then you will be compensated for your loss.

    Do you want to make an occupational illness claim?

    These conditions and syndromes are preventable by reducing or eliminating hazardous exposures in the workplace.

    They are often difficult to recognise because their symptoms may mimic non-occupational illness. Additionally there often exists a long latency period between the exposure and manifestation of symptoms of the illness.

    Although compensation claims for personal injury generally must be brought within 3 years of the cause, the time limit may be extended where the date of the knowledge of your injury and its cause is some time after the damage arose.

How Much Compensation?

The amount of compensation that you will be entitled to will depend on the severity of your injuries and disabilities and the extent of your loss. A compensation award is comprised of different categories as follows:-

    General Damages

      Compensation for pain and suffering; loss of amenities of life; loss of life expectancy.

    Special Damages

      Loss of Income: includes past and future income loss.

      Out-of-pocket expenses: includes medical expenses; pharmaceutical expenses; rehabilitation services; cost of travelling to and from medical appointments to receive medical treatment.

      Gratuitous domestic care provided to you by family members or friends as a result of your illness, injuries and disabilities.

    Interest on damages

      Interest on damages is paid at a rate and from a time set by the court until the date of payment of compensation

Occupational Illness Solicitors

It is important however, that you do not delay in obtaining legal advice for an industrial disease claim. As soon as you become aware that you may have symptoms you should see your doctor immediately for a medical assessment and if necessary you should seek legal advice from an occupational illness solicitor immediately.

Finding the right personal injury solicitor can be a frustrating process. How do you know who to choose? How do you know whether they are experienced enough to handle your case? Do they have access to the best possible medical experts? Can they provide accurate advice? Will they conclude your case in a timely manner or will you be waiting years and years before you see any money? Our lawyers are personal injury experts. They have many years of experience in handling a wide variety of accident claims. They have access to excellent medical experts and can provide you with accurate, comprehensive advice. The best part of this is that it does not cost you anything to access our service. Its completely free! You can speak to a personal injury compensation solicitor and make up your own mind as to whether you want to use them or not. There is no obligation. If you do decide to go ahead with them, it won't cost you a penny because they all operate on the no win no fee scheme. Win or lose there is no charge.

  1. Our occupational illness solicitors will provide you with legal advice on your rights and entitlements to compensation with no further obligation.

  2. Our solicitors are specialists with extensive experience in negotiating, settling and litigating accident compensation claims.

  3. If you decide to instruct any of our specialists to obtain compensation for you, they will act on a no win no fee< basis. Compensation is paid in full and win or lose there is no charge.

Main Types of Occupational Diseases in Australia

Industrial disease claim settlements in are now one of the major fields of litigation law with specialist compensation lawyers often dealing with nothing else but just one specific type of claim. Our Occupational Illness Solicitors are true experts and are hard to beat due to their in depth knowledge of the narrow topic of occupational illness in which they specialise:-

    RSI Repetitive Strain Injury Industrial Disease Claim

    This occupational illness is caused by continual motion of the muscles whilst under stress in more or less the same configuration without adequate rest periods. The work carried out need not be heavy and is often contributed to by poor posture. It can cause problems in different parts of the body including the hands, fingers and the thumb.

    Vibration Injury Industrial Disease Claim

    Various conditions come under this general description including whole body vibration syndrome (wbvs), hand arm vibration syndrome (havs) and vibration white finger (vwf). This injury is caused by repeated exposure to vibrating equipment usually in cold conditions and mainly affects the extremities. The condition cannot be treated and sufferers should cease contact with the equipment that is to blame immediately upon diagnosis.

    Respiratory Disease

    This global description encompasses all manner of occupational illness including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (copd), occupational asthma, chronic bronchitis, industrial emphysema and byssinosis as well as lung cancer and some of the asbestos related diseases. It also includes pneumoconiosis and silicosis caused by exposure to dust. Almost without exception these diseases are caused by exposure to gasses and particles in dirty environments that could have been prevented by the use of adequate ventilation and extraction.

    Industrial Deafness

    Notwithstanding massive campaigns and draconian legislation this occupational illness remains a major legal industry with thousands of industrial disease claim settlements. Employers who fail to provide adequate ear protection in a noisy environment which causes industrial deafness are liable to pay compensation.

    Asbestos Related Disease

    New cases of asbestos related disease are still very common with the numbers continuing to rise due to the latency of as much as 30 years between exposure and symptoms. The main conditions caused by exposure to asbestos fibres include asbestosis, mesothelioma, pleural disease and lung cancer.

    Work Induced Stress

    This has been a difficult legal topic for decades however in the last few years there have been quite a number of successful industrial disease claim settlements against employers particularly those who were aware of the sensitivities and vulnerabilities of a particular member of staff notwithstanding which the employer still placed that employee in a difficult or stressful environment with the inevitable result of a relapse of a pre-existent psychiatric condition.

    Skin Disease

    This description of occupational illness encompasses contact dermatitis (irritant contact dermatitis and allergic contact dermatitis), urticaria, follicle abnormalities, skin infections, pigment disorders and neoplasms (cancers). All of these conditions are avoidable by the use of gloves, barrier creams and most important of all, care in handling dangerous substances.

Alternative Dispute Resolution

When advising about the resolution of a personal injury compensation claim, litigation is not the only option. There is a range of processes available. Whatever the process chosen, thorough preparation is the key to achieving a successful outcome. Whether the dispute is negotiated, litigated or mediated, the preparation required is similar.

    Mediation

      Mediation is a structured negotiation process in which a mediator, who is independent of the parties and neutral, assists the parties to reach an agreement

    Negotiation

      Negotiation may be described as informal discussion by the parties to reach agreement which may take place before or after the commencement of litigation. Over 90% of cases in which litigation is commenced finalise as a result of an acceptable personal injury settlement offer. Many personal injury compensation claims are settled by negotiations between the parties either in a formal setting such as a pre-trial conference or informally by telephone or in face to face negotiations.

    Conciliation

      A conciliator attempts to negotiate between the parties but does not bring the parties together.

    Arbitration

      Arbitration is similar to a trial where an arbitrator hears the evidence of the parties and makes an award.

Whatever method is used to resolve your personal injury compensation claim, it must be remembered that once a financial settlement has been finalised the terms become binding between the parties. That is, at the conclusion of your case, you cannot go back for more money, even if your symptoms worsen.


Occupational Injury Solicitors

Our occupational injury solicitors operate the no win no fee scheme and if you instruct our compensation lawyers to deal with your claim you will be certain that you are receiving high quality legal representation. To contact our advocates just use the helpline or complete the contact form or email our offices.

LAWYER HELPLINE: 1800 339 958

The author of the substantive medical writing on this website is Dr. Christine Traxler MD whose biography can be read here