Dag, Bob, UofULG or anyone else, I have a scenario for you.
My friend slipped and fell inside a Wal-Mart in Washington state. There was water on the floor, and the area wasn't marked, so it's clearly their fault that she fell. She hurt her knee so badly in the fall, that she hasn't been to work in almost 3 months. They sent her a check for her first 6 weeks of lost pay and hopefully they'll be sending the next one along.
Well, Tami had to have surgery on this knee. Obviously, all of her expenses should be paid for by Wal-Mart as well. Her insurance agent brother told her that it would need to go to court now. Yeah. Probably. She doesn't have a lawyer yet because she's been battling through this surgery and recovery.
The recovery is where it gets interesting. She isn't recovering the way she should. She's still having terrible swelling and pain (after almost a month!) and she's coming up on the end of her disability and insurance (because she's been out of work for 12 weeks.) The problem is, her Dr. has told her to go back to work this week. She works 12 hour shifts as a CNA and she's on her feet the whole time. There is no way she can go back to work, her physical therapist blatantly told her that she's in no shape to do so. But the Dr. is telling her to go.
So here are my questions:
1. If she gets a second opinion which results in a Dr. switch, would that have a bad effect on her position in the lawsuit against Wal-mart?
2. Should she get a lawyer before she gets a second opinion/switches doctors?
She's told me that Wal-Mart has been 'hard to get a hold of' lately and isn't returning her phone calls about this second pay check that she's supposed to get...and she also suspects that something is terribly wrong with her knee, meaning that there's a possible suit against the Dr. if he made a mistake in her surgery.
I'm trying to help her sort this out and my immediate advice was to A) get a lawyer and B) get another Dr. I'm worried that if her Dr. claims that she's able to work, she won't get the money from Wal-mart anymore. She really isn't in any shape to work, and she may even have to change occupations if she can't work on her feet any more.
Do you guys have any advice/help that I can pass on to her? Thanks in advance. Posted by fugu13 (Member # 2859) on :
She should get a recommendation from the local bar assocation and get a lawyer ASAP.
edit: she's definitely going to need a lawyer, and the sooner one's brought in, the better.
Posted by Narnia (Member # 1071) on :
Local bar association...would that be googleable?
She lives in Oregon, but the accident happened in Washington. She told me that she needs to get a lawyer from Washington (which doesn't make sense to me because it would be so inconvenient for her). Is that true?
Posted by Theaca (Member # 8325) on :
I'm guessing here, but, the lawyer certainly needs to be able to practice in the state of Washington, right? Because the case will be in Washington. So most likely you're looking for a Washington lawyer unless you find one in Oregon than can work in both states.
Posted by Narnia (Member # 1071) on :
That makes sense.
Posted by Valentine014 (Member # 5981) on :
Silly people beating me Posted by Valentine014 (Member # 5981) on :
Haha! Finally I beat someone to the Google!
Posted by fugu13 (Member # 2859) on :
I didn't google, I went straight to the aba website, which linked me there.
Posted by Dagonee (Member # 5818) on :
I'll echo everyone here: she needs to get a lawyer. Especially if there will be multiple defendants. I'm not sure where the suit will be brought (state v. federal, or which state if the doctor gets involved), so a dual-licensed lawyer or one who has worked with local counsel in Oregon would be best.
I wish her the best.
Posted by Theaca (Member # 8325) on :
If she is supposed to go to work this monday, it would be nice to have some further documentation to the contrary. She could have her therapist call her doctor on Monday. That can change his mind. Or, call asap monday morning when the office opens and insist on another appointment.
Posted by Narnia (Member # 1071) on :
Thanks guys, those links are helpful.
She doesn't have to go to work until Friday, and she sees her PT tomorrow morning, so I'll pass this info on to her.
Posted by Kwea (Member # 2199) on :
I would have the PT people call the doc right away, and that may change the entire situation for her asd well. also, is there light duty avaliable for her at work? A lot of time the docs will send some back early but on "restricted activity", or LD as it was called in teh Army. That will involve a ton of restrictions, all of which must be followed by the employer. If the employer can't or won't follow the restrictions then it is THEIR fault you can't work and they can't blame you for the extra time off.
Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
It would be hard to work as a CNA on restricted duty. But it's certainly an option, and if the doctor spells out the restrictions and the work can't follow them, you're right, it's the work's problem. However, I don't think they're required to give her any pay for resulting extra time off; they just can't fire her.
If the doctor talks to the PT, it ought to change his mind. If it doesn't, there's something going on with the doctor, and it might be a good idea to get a second opinion. Or, he might just be unaware of her line of work and need specifics on why she can't go in; make sure he knows what she does!
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