Frequently Used Workers’ Compensation Terms and Phrases

The insurance company responsible for providing Workers’ Compensation benefits on behalf of the employer of the injured worker.

Money benefits paid to the injured worker by the insurance company. These benefits are paid weekly to compensate for lost wages or permanent injury.

The level of work an injured person can perform. This must be determined by a doctor.

This is a work status for an injured person who cannot perform any level of work. In an accepted case, a person who is TT will receive a weekly check.

This is a work status for an injured person who can work without restrictions.

A percentage of disability to an injured body part. This is assigned by a doctor once the injured person has reached maximum medical improvement.

A type of weekly benefit paid to an injured worker who has returned to work but is not earning as much money as before he or she was injured. These benefits must be awarded by a judge. The judge has discretion over the duration and amount of the benefit.

Closing a Workers’ Compensation claim in exchange for a one-time lump sum of money. The settlement is calculated by adding up all foreseeable medical and indemnity benefits that may need to be paid to the Claimant. Once the claim is settled, the Respondent will no longer be responsible for any future indemnity benefits or medical treatment. This is also sometimes referred to as a “Full and Final Stipulation”.

The average of your gross wages for one year (52 weeks) prior to your date of injury. This is used to calculate your Workers’ Compensation rate. This average includes bonuses and overtime.

The rate of pay at which you will be paid Workers’ Compensation indemnity benefits. This is calculated by using your average weekly wage and your tax filing status for the year in which you are injured. The benefit tables used to calculate compensation rates can be found here.

Medical evaluation ordered by a Workers’ Compensation judge with a doctor of his or her choosing. This will be scheduled to resolve a difference of opinion between a Claimant’s treating doctor and a Respondent’s Medical Examiner (RME). The judge will usually side with the opinion of the CME to settle the disputed issue or medical question.

The decision maker in a Workers’ Compensation claim. Formerly referred to as “Commissioners”, they are now officially judges.

Form that needs to be filed in order to properly file a claim for Workers’ Compensation survivor’s benefits. This form can be found here.

Form filed by the Respondent to indicate intent to reduce or stop payment of indemnity benefits to the Claimant. The Claimant or Claimant’s lawyer can object to the motion to say why the Claimant’s benefits should not be reduced or stopped.

This is the first level of a Workers’ Compensation claim hearings. At an Informal Hearing, the Claimant or lawyers for the Claimant will meet with a lawyer or representative from the insurance company to discuss the status of the case and any disputed issues. The meeting is held before a workers’ compensation judge. It is common for multiple informal hearings to happen over the course of a Workers’ Compensation claim.

This is the intermediary level of Workers’ Compensation hearings. A PreFormal may be scheduled if a dispute about an issue was not resolved at a prior Informal Hearing. At PreFormal Hearings, lawyers and the Workers’ Compensation judge will look to determine if an issue can be resolved or needs to proceed to the next level.