LOUISIANA OFFICE OF WORKERS COMPENSATION

The Louisiana Office of Workers Compensation is a Division of the Louisiana Department of Labor. The Louisiana Office of Workers Compensation has a number of specialized divisions involved in the administration of the Louisiana Workers Compensation system, including:

• a Medical Services Division which oversees disputes about medical treatment.
   
• a Fraud Division which investigates allegations of fraud by employers or employees.
   
• a Hearings Division which operates ten Hearing Offices throughout Louisiana.

The Hearings Division is the part of the Louisiana Office of Workers Compensation with which individuals may file a Disputed Claim for Compensation if their case is not being handled correctly by the insurance company. Filing this form with your local Louisiana Office of Workers Compensation Hearing Office will eventually result in a trial before a Louisiana Workers Compensation Judge.

Though the facts of each case are different, there are a number of things that must be done in almost every claim to prepare a Louisiana Workers Compensation case for trial.

Most Louisiana Workers Compensation claims include three or four conferences with the Court in the months leading up to a trial, including:

• An Initial Mediation Conference, in which the parties meet with an Attorney Mediator who works for the Louisiana Office of Workers Compensation to determine if the claim can be resolved through settlement or if the issues can be simplified. This meeting is often held as a telephone conference call.
    
•  A Status Conference or Pre-Trial Conference, in which the Judge and attorneys discuss and select the dates for (1) completing the exchange of information about the issues, (2) submitting documents required for trial to the Office of Workers Compensation, (3) participating in the Pre-Trial Mediation Conference, and (4) holding the trial.
    
• A Pre-Trial Mediation Conference, at which the parties meet at the Louisiana Office of Workers' Compensation a few weeks before the trial to discuss the case and attempt to resolve the issues through negotiation.

Many cases will also include the depositions of the injured employee, the physicians who have examined the employee, the insurance company's adjuster and other witnesses who know important information about the claim.

The trial of a Louisiana Workers Compensation claim may be as brief as a few hours, to as long as two days. After the Judge's decision is issued, either party may file an appeal with the Louisiana Appellate Courts.

It typically takes about 9-12 months from the time that a Disputed Claim for Compensation is filed until the case goes to trial. An appeal of that decision will usually involve at least 6 additional months. These time periods may be highly variable depending upon the circumstances of each individual case.