Case at a glance
- Recovery: $390,000 Arbitration Award
- Injury: Herniated lumbar disc; back surgery recommended
- Practice: Personal Injury
- Attorney: Vuk Vujasinovic
A lifting injury in a cabinet shop
Jacinto worked as a cabinetmaker in Wharton, Texas. On March 4, 2004, he said he hurt his back while twisting to lift several oak cabinet doors.
At the end of that shift, the company suspended him for poor performance. It later denied his claim for medical and wage benefits, citing the timing of his injury report.
Jacinto claimed a herniated disc in his lower back. He received conservative treatment, and a laminectomy was recommended. He had not undergone that surgery when the case reached arbitration.
Challenging the denial of benefits
Vuk and the VB Attorneys team pursued claims involving both workplace safety and the company’s employee injury benefit plan. Jacinto alleged that the company had negligently failed to provide a safe workplace.
The parties disagreed about when he reported the incident. The company contended that he waited a week. Jacinto’s position was that he reported it within three days and that the benefit plan’s reporting language was ambiguous.
The dispute proceeded to arbitration. Vuk and the VB Attorneys team had to address not only the lifting incident but also the employer’s reasons for withholding benefits.
Presenting the injury and its effect on work
The company denied that the incident occurred as claimed and disputed negligence and causation. It also argued that Jacinto was either not injured or was exaggerating his condition.
Jacinto sought compensation for his past medical treatment and recommended future care. His claim also included time away from work and the injury’s effect on his future earning capacity.
The company challenged both the need for future treatment and the size of the claimed earnings loss. Those competing positions were presented during a three-day arbitration.
A $390,000 arbitration award
The arbitrator awarded Jacinto $390,000.
The result followed a contested workplace injury claim in which the employer disputed the event itself, the reporting deadline and the consequences of the back injury.
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