Practice Areas
Workers Compensation / Nonsubscriber Defense
MehaffyWeber has a concentrated practice in the area of workers’ compensation and nonsubscriber defense. Our lawyers have developed a reputation for the successful defending of employers, who are subscribers being sued as nonsubscribers and for nonsubscribers. Additionally, we have successfully argued motions for summary judgment in cases where the plaintiffs are still alive and not entitled to bring a direct action against the employer. Our firm is equipped to handle the defense of complex and significant financial exposure workers’ compensation, nonsubscriber, and third-party liability cases involving major injuries and fatalities.
Our experienced trial lawyers take an aggressive approach to nonsubscriber defense because we know the law, the issues, and the workers’ compensation system. Our clients operate in a variety of industries, including energy, construction, manufacturing, retail and hospitality, and transportation.
While injured workers deserve to be compensated, insurers and employers are often asked to overpay, and they should not have to pay more than a claim merits. Texas law provides several defenses employers can use to deny workers’ compensation benefits.
If the employer can successfully argue any of these defenses, then the employee is completely barred from receiving workers’ compensation benefits:
- Act of God
- Contributing Injury That Occurred Before the Accident
- Horseplay
- Intoxicated Employee
- Intentional Harm Done by a Co-worker
- Injury Caused by Recreational Activity
- Not Within Course and Scope of Employment
- Self-Inflicted Injury
Workers’ Compensation Nonsubscribers
While most states make employers offer workers’ compensation coverage to employees, Texas does not. Instead, a business whose employees could be eligible for the program can choose to opt out of the system in an action called nonsubscription. When a business is a workers’ compensation nonsubscriber, the employer establishes its own plan and system to address workplace injuries. Many employers don’t realize that nonsubscription has been an option in Texas since 1913. Nonsubscribers include employers of all sizes, from local single-site organizations to multi-site Fortune 500 employers. Our attorneys are knowledgeable about the peculiarities of the Texas/Oklahoma/Louisiana Labor Code and the case law to defend cases in state or federal court or in arbitration.
Texas Workers Compensation Defense Lawyers
We have a well-regarded workers’ compensation defense practice, with attorneys in state and federal courts across Texas. Our firm offers a full range of services to self-insured employers, insurance companies, corporations and non-subscribers, especially in the area of litigation defense. We serve as counsel to companies on a statewide basis, who range in size from large to small. We are equipped to staff and defend both high volume and unique workers’ compensation litigation.