Question: I am receiving Workers’ Compensation wage loss checks. Today, I got a confusing legal document in the mail with my name on it. It says “Petition For Termination” and something called “Supersedeas” is being requested. What is this?
Short Answer: The Workers Comp insurance company wants to cut off your Work Comp check right now.
Once you have a Notice of Compensation Payable (NCP); the WC Insurance Company is legally required to pay you Workers’ Compensation. (Please note, there are several types of Notice of Compensation Payable forms) Its like being married; there is a legally binding contract that you can’t change unless you go to Court and ask for a divorce.
Once the WC insurance company “marries” your work-related injury by issuing an NCP; they can’t get out of their obligation to pay you without the permission of a Workers Compensation Judge.
The Petition for Termination is the legal request by the Workers’ Compensation insurance company to cut your benefits off. In a few weeks, you will receive a Hearing Notice telling you where and when the case will be tried in front of a Workers’ Compensation Judge.
Wait; there is more. “Supersedeas” is legal slang for “right now”. The Workers’ Compensation insurance company gets a special break if they request Supersedeas; then the Work Comp Judge has to issue a temporary decision within two weeks of the first hearing either cutting you off or keeping you on Workers’ Compensation wage loss benefits.
Injured workers don’t get a Supersedeas. If a Claimant files a Claim Petition seeking to be paid WC; the average case takes about a year before the Judge issues a decision. The WC insurance company seeking to stop payment to a claimant gets the advantage of a quick yes/no decision very early in the case.
Consider this a warning shot, you have to get evidence RIGHT NOW to fight your case. You will need an attorney since Workers’ Compensation law is complicated; so complicated that WC attorneys can take a special test and be certified as WC Specialists by the PA Supreme Court.
You have to move quickly because of the Supersedeas hearing. The Workers’ Compensation insurance company may be alleging that you are fully recovered; or that there is a job available or that in their opinion you are no longer entitled to WC because of surveillance or earnings.
Please note that the Supersedeas applies only to your weekly check. There is no supersedeas for medical payments.
If you have questions regarding your workers’ compensation benefits, it is important that you have an experienced Central Pennsylvania workers’ compensation attorney on your side. Call Calhoon and Kaminsky P.C., at (717) 695-4722, for more information or a FREE lawyer review of your case.
