WorkCover Lawyer Melbourne
We can help you get the WorkCover compensation you’re entitled to
If you’ve been injured at work in Melbourne and you’ve lodged a WorkCover claim – or are thinking of doing so – you may be thinking of engaging a WorkCover lawyer to help you with your claim.
We (Michael and Peter) are both lawyers who represent injured Melbourne workers with their Victorian WorkCover claims. We are directors of a law firm with a focus on representing injured workers.
We have a combined 30+ years of experience representing injured workers across Victoria with their WorkCover claims.
We do not represent large insurance companies or employers. Only workers.
We’ve both worked at a large law firm with offices across Melbourne and regional Victoria.
No win no fee lawyers
100% no win no fee agreement
We offer a true 100% no win no fee agreement. This means that if we represent a client on a no win no fee basis, if they are not successful in their matter they will not be required to pay any costs. This means no professional costs and no disbursement costs.
How does no win no fee work?
A no win no fee agreement is something that most personal injury lawyers and WorkCover lawyers will offer to clients in WorkCover matters in Victoria.
Not all no win no fee agreements are the same however. There can be great differences between the no win no fee agreements of law firms.
Many people believe that, under a no-win no fee agreement that the lawyer that they hire will run their WorkCover matter from start to finish, and only if they are successful and win their case will costs need to be paid.
With some lawyers, this is how the no-win no fee agreements work.
However, with others, that is not the case.
There are two components to legal costs, generally speaking when it comes to know when no fee agreement.
The first is called professional costs. These are the costs for work done by the lawyer and law firm.
The second component is disbursements. These are costs that the law firm will pay out to other parties on your behalf, in order to progress your matter. An example of a common disbursement is medical report fees to doctors.
Most law firms, under a no-win, no fee agreement. If you are not successful, will waive the professional fees.
However, not all law firms will waive the disbursements if you are not successful in your matter.
Some firms will require you to pay for all or some of the outstanding disbursement costs, even if you lose under their no-win no fee agreement. We don’t.
Some firms will also ask for some money to be paid up front by a client, even if they are representing a client under a no win no fee agreement. We do not ask our clients to pay any money up front when we represent them in their WorkCover matter.
What can a WorkCover lawyer help you claim?
Under the WorkCover scheme in Victoria, there are four entitlements a lawyer can assist you with these entitlements below. Read more about our WorkCover legal services.
Medical and like expenses
Weekly payments
Impairment lump sum claim
Common law lump sum claim
One of the best injury lawyers in Melbourne
Here’s 5 reasons why:
“Thank you for all your work over the past few months …. I feel as though a weight has been lifted off my shoulders.”
– Richard C
"“Dear Michael, thanks for your time yesterday. It was really helpful for me to have someone who is informed listen to my experience and to provide guidance.”
T.M
“The advice you gave me was so helpful. I didn’t know that I could get WorkCover help like this.”
Allen H
“…. It was a very positive experience for me and worthwhile.”
S.G
“Amazing lawyers!! .…I had a WorkCover matter that they resolved for me within a few months. I don’t think I could have got a better outcome than what they did for me. From the start they explained the legal process to me so I knew what was going on, and any questions along the way they answered for me. Highly recommended.”
Alex P
“I was initially with another firm and I didn’t feel like my WorkCover claim was moving at all. I felt like I had to push to get my claim to move. So I looked around for another lawyer and found Peter and I’m so happy that I did. I feel comfortable with him. I’ve found I can always ask more questions and he provides details. He’s good at explaining what I need to do. I feel like things are moving now and I’m confident with my claim being in his hands.”
Lynne G
"“I wish, I wish I wish I wish I found you earlier when my injury happened.
I was depressed but after talking to you my depression and blood pressure have eased.”
W Haddara
"….I have since recommended your service to others and will continue to do so – having someone with your experience within such a very complex system and to help us navigate further, was a positive experience
Thank you for your support !”
W.B
“I was struggling to obtain answers from an insurer regarding my request for an essential second operation. Months of delays and uncertainty caused immense stress, frustration and anxiety. So, I decided to seek professional support. Peter …. not only assisted with my surgery approval, but also supported me in obtaining weekly payments and financial support for rehabilitation services such as Pilates. I highly recommend (them) to anyone struggling with a claim or needing support.”
– Michelle Gregson
“I cannot express my gratitude enough to Peter today for his wealth of knowledge when it comes to my Workcover concerns and questions. It is such a hard road to navigate when you aren’t aware of your rights or entitlements but Peter, you have gone above and beyond to make sure that I have a full understanding of everything that I need to know. I truly cannot thank you enough.”
Michelle R
“(They) did a fantastic job for me during a very stressful period in my life. They were very professional, and I would wholeheartedly recommend them to anyone that needs legal help.”
– Martin S
“….I’m sure sometimes people call you who are very emotional and I found that you definitely have patience. I found you to be highly professional straight away. I found that I could trust you. I felt desperate and hopeless but after talking with you I felt better. I felt there was a light at the end of the tunnel.”
I.G
"I learned more speaking to Peter for a couple of hours, then I’ve learned with dealing with another firm for years.”
Dean G
“I contacted them in relation to my work injury, my employer also terminated my employment. They pursued an unfair dismissal application for me and won, I was very happy with the result. My WorkCover matter is ongoing.”
Y.L
What will a Workers Compensation lawyer do for you?
Every case is different, so some of these tasks might not be required in your case:
- Initial interview/appointment with you to obtain the facts of the case.
- Educate you about the law relating to WorkCover cases.
- Obtain medical reports and clinical notes from your treating doctors and health providers.
- Obtain accident reports.
- Interview witnesses.
- Obtain tax and pay material.
- Collect other evidence.
- Analyse medical material to determine any gaps that need to be addressed.
- Arrange for you to be assessed by medico legal specialist doctors (these are specialist doctors who don’t treat you – they just provide a report to be used in your case).
- Analyse the legal issues, including contributory negligence.
- Ensure the WorkCover insurer is paying your regular income payments correctly.
- Ensure the WorkCover insurer is paying the reasonable costs of your medical treatment.
- Enter into negotiations with WorkCover’s lawyers to settle your case.
- If the case can’t be settled, issue court proceedings and prepare the matter for hearing.
- Take the case to trial with a judge alone, or a judge and jury.
- Analyse the judgement to determine whether there are grounds to appeal the case.
Do you really need a lawyer in a work injury matter?
In short, no. You don’t need a lawyer for every WorkCover case.
So how do you know whether you don’t need one?
If you are going to pursue lump sum compensation then we’d recommend you hire a lawyer.
Why?
Because achieving the best result depends on having someone who knows what they’re doing.
Yes, you can do your own plumbing work in your home, but if you don’t know what you’re doing and you get things wrong – things can go wrong very badly.
But, in order to pursue lump sum compensation, you need to have an injury that persists.
If you have a minor injury that heals quickly and you get back to how you were before the injury, you’re not likely to be entitled to lump sum compensation.
That’s what the law in Victoria says.
You will still be entitled to the payment of medical expenses and income payments if you can’t work though. In cases like these where you don’t have an entitlement to lump sum compensation, there’s plenty of freely available information on our site and elsewhere to help you out.
Usually, the WorkCover insurer will tell you what information you need to give them. So if your WorkCover case is made up solely of you getting paid your medical expenses and some loss of income, then yes you can handle that yourself.
However if things get difficult, for example the WorkCover insurer make a decision that you disagree with – like terminating your entitlement to physiotherapy treatment – it might be a good idea to then hire a lawyer to help you contest that decision.
Is a personal injury lawyer the same as a WorkCover lawyer?
A personal injury lawyer is a general term to describe a lawyer that assists people that have been injured in a variety of circumstances.
For example, this could include when a person is injured at work, on the road or in a motor vehicle accident, or in a public place.
A WorkCover lawyer is in most instances, a personal injury lawyer.
A WorkCover lawyer is a personal injury lawyer that assists people with their WorkCover matters.
It is possible for a personal injury lawyer to not be a WorkCover lawyer.
Is a WorkCover lawyer the same as a workers compensation lawyer?
In Victoria a WorkCover lawyer is the same as a workers compensation lawyer.
WorkCover is the Victorian workers compensation scheme.
WorkCover and Workers compensation FAQ’s:
Do you represent people with all types of injuries?
Yes.
Some people think they need to have a severe injury to have a WorkCover lawyer help them.
Michael and I represent people with the full range of injuries – from minor to severe.
And we offer no win no fee representation in relation to all injuries, not just the severe ones.
Do you offer 'no win no fee' legal representation?
Yes.
As explained above, not all no win no fee agreements are the same. Some agreements can be much more favourable for a client.
Our no win no fee, summarised, means this:
If you don’t win your matter, you don’t pay anything. This means you don’t pay professional fees (fees for work done) and you don’t pay disbursements (costs and expenses paid by the lawyer on your behalf).
Some firms will ask you to pay for disbursements if you don’t win under their no win no fee agreement – we don’t.
What are your fees?
We are experienced lawyers and we are not budget priced.
Our fees vary from matter to matter and are based on the amount of work done.
We offer no win no fee representation in most matters.
Before doing any work you will be provided with a costs document that outlines the scope of work to be done and the likely costs payable by you.
This gives you some costs certainty.
At that point you can decide whether you wish to proceed or not.
You will not receive a bill from us until you have received and signed one of these costs documents.
How much your bill will be depends upon the amount of work required. It is not based on percentages of your overall compensation amount.
At the initial appointment, you’re welcome to ask us for an idea as to possible costs you’d need to pay (on a no win no fee basis) in your matter.
What if I speak to you and decide to use another lawyer after the first appointment?
That’s fine.
There’s no cost for the initial appointment so you won’t have to pay anything. Any information shared with us will remain confidential.
Can you help with all WorkCover issues?
For an injured worker, yes.
Here’s some of the common WorkCover issues we help our clients with:
General WorkCover claim issues
- Preparing and lodging a claim (or helping you to do so)
- Advising in relation to the claim determination process
- If your claim is accepted, advising as to your entitlements
- If your claim is rejected, contesting the insurer’s decision on your behalf.
Medical and like expenses
- Termination of medical expenses
- Non payment of medical expenses
- Delay in paying a particular type of medical expense
- Advising you in relation to what you can claim
Weekly payments
- Termination of weekly payments
- Non payment of weekly payments
- Delay in insurer or employer making weekly payments
- Reviewing your pre injury average weekly earnings figure (PIAWE)
Impairment lump sum claim
- Obtaining medical material in support of the claim from your treating doctors and other health practitioners
- Preparing the relevant claim form on your behalf
- Lodgement of the claim on the insurer
- Advising you as to the process
- Advising you as to whether to accept or reject the offered settlement amount
- Providing a submission to the medical panel
Common law lump sum claim
- Obtaining medical material in support of the claim from your treating doctors and other health practitioners
- Engaging counsel when appropriate
- Drafting affidavit material in support of the claim that tells your ‘before’ and ‘after’ picture
- Speaking to people that are closest to you and drafting affidavit material from them
- Obtaining other material in support of a ‘serious injury application’
- Lodgement of a serious injury application and advising
- Pursuing your matter to either the County Court or Supreme Court, when required
You can read more about helping with all four entitlements, rather just two two here.
Will a big firm get me more compensation?
The size of the firm, in almost all cases. does not matter when it comes to the compensation amount that you will obtain.
A small firm, or even a solo lawyer can obtain just as much or more compensation than a lawyer that works for a big firm.
Big firms and small firms have access and engage the same doctors and the same barristers.
What matters most is that you have a lawyer working directly with you who has a significant experience working with the WorkCover system.
In my experience, the only time having a big firm becomes relevant as a client is when a group of people are bringing a class action claim.
Due to the large number of potential clients in class actions, the resources needed to prepare the claim on behalf of these people big firm resources are important.
I’m with another lawyer now, can you take over my case?
Maybe, but possibly no.
This is decided on a case by case basis.
While it is not uncommon for people to change lawyers, whether we take a case on from another lawyer depends upon the nature of your matter and where it is at.
The earlier in your matter the better. This isn’t early in terms of time – you could have been with a lawyer for a few years.
By early we mean in terms of what entitlements you have claimed. Have you claimed an impairment claim? Have you claimed a common law claim?
You’re welcome to schedule an appointment with us to discuss your matter and we’ll let you know whether we are able to take your case over.
Have you handled a WorkCover case like mine?
Perhaps not exactly the same as yours, but likely we’ve handled similar cases, yes.
Both Michael and I have represented people with minor injuries to severe injuries.
We’ve represented people injured in single incidents at work, and people who have been injured over the course of many years (in some instances, over the course of decades).
Given the number of WorkCover matters we’ve handled over the years – we estimate combined it’s in excess of 2000 different WorkCover matter between us – it’s highly likely that we’ve both represented clients with injuries and issues similar to those in your matter.
Can you represent people in all states and territories of Australia?
We can represent only those people who have Victorian WorkCover claims.
You don’t need to live in Victoria, but you must have a Victorian WorkCover claim, or be entitled to claim WorkCover benefits in Victoria
Schedule a consultation
Either in person in Melbourne, via video conferencing or over the phone.