Deliberate Intent and Workplace Injury Lawyers in Charleston, West Virginia

If you have been injured while on the job, you may be legally eligible for workers’ compensation. Workers’ compensation laws provide employees injured on the jobsite with financial compensation without the need for civil litigation. If you are being denied workers’ compensation, you can file a claim. At the law office of Berthold, Tiano & O’Dell, our workplace injury lawyers, serving Charleston and the state of West Virginia, can help you with your case.

Our staff can also determine if you’re eligible for a deliberate intent case, which is unique to the state of West Virginia. Also known as “Mandolidis” laws, deliberate intent laws provide an avenue for pursuing further monetary compensation in instances where it can be proven that the employer had a deliberate intent to create an unsafe work environment. If you believe that your employer had a deliberate and purposeful disregard for the safety of you and your fellow employees, you may be eligible for compensation outside that outlined in the workers’ compensation plan. Our deliberate intent lawyers in the Charleston, West Virginia area can review your case and determine the appropriateness of pursuing such action. Contact our workplace injury lawyers to set up a consultation.

• Workers’ Compensation
• Deliberate Intent Litigation

Workers’ Compensation

Workers’ compensation insurance, usually offered by either the employer or an insurance carrier hired by the employer, is designed to provide any workers injured on the job with fixed monetary compensation during the duration of their time away from work. Workers’ compensation laws are in place so that injured workers can obtain financial compensation without inundating the local court system with employee injury claims.

The law is intended to protect not only the employee, but the employer as well. Many workers’ compensation laws have specific clauses in them designed to benefit the employer. These clauses usually prevent the employer from having to pay exorbitant settlements to injured employees and also protect fellow employees from liability and lawsuits. In the case of a wrongful death, workers’ compensation laws also have clauses that award the dependants of the deceased with financial compensation for a loss of future income, as well as damages related to the loss of a family member. To learn more about workers’ compensation, or to schedule a free consultation, contact our workplace injury lawyers in Charleston, West Virginia. We can help you obtain the compensation you deserve.

Deliberate Intent Litigation

In the state of West Virginia, you can file a claim against your employer for additional compensation if you believe your employer has shown a deliberate intent to injure employees by requiring them to work in an unsafe work environment. To file a successful deliberate intent claim, a lawyer must be able to prove that all five of the following criteria were met by the employer:

1. That a specific unsafe working condition existed in the workplace which presented a high degree of risk and a strong probability of serious injury or death;
2. That the employer had a subjective realization and an appreciation of the existence of such a specific unsafe working condition and of the high degree of risk and the strong probability of serious injury or death presented by the specific unsafe working condition;
3. That the specific unsafe working condition was a violation of a state or federal safety statute, rule or regulation, whether cited or not, or of a commonly accepted and well-known safety standard within the industry or business of such employer, which statute, rule, regulation or standard was specifically applicable to the particular work and working condition involved, as contrasted with a statute, rule, regulation or standard generally requiring safe workplaces, equipment or working conditions;
4. That notwithstanding the existence of the facts set forth in subparagraphs (A) through (C) hereof, such employer nevertheless thereafter exposed an employee to such specific unsafe working condition intentionally; and
5. That such employee so exposed suffered serious injury or death as a direct and proximate result of such specific unsafe working condition.
   W. Va. Code § 23-4-2(c)(2)(ii).

Contact our deliberate intent lawyers in Charleston, West Virginia today to schedule a consultation. We can review your case and determine if you’re eligible for additional compensation.

Would You Like to Learn More?

To learn more about deliberate intent or workers’ compensation laws in West Virginia, contact Berthold, Tiano & O'Dell today. The workplace injury and deliberate intent lawyers at our Charleston, West Virginia law office can help.

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