Workers' Compensation Defense

Workers' Compensation Defense Attorneys with Decades of Experience

The Wasserman, Comden & Casselman LLP workers' compensation defense department was created to offer clients the natural synergies available in a full service law firm. The department came into existence in the 2003 merger with the workers' compensation defense firm of Clopton, Penny & Brenner.

That firm had its beginnings shortly after the enactment of the first Workers' Compensation Act in California and celebrated its 55th anniversary in the year of the firm's merger. The workers' compensation department of Wasserman, Comden & Casselman LLP, continues in the same tradition, and remains exclusively devoted to the defense of workers' compensation claims.

We are fully certified by the State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization. Wasserman, Comden & Casselman lawyers regularly appear at all the Workers' Compensation Appeals Board offices in Southern California, most frequently in Los Angeles, Ventura and Santa Barbara counties, with appearances as well in Orange, San Bernardino and Riverside, San Diego counties. Under special circumstances we will appear in San Luis Obispo, San Diego and Kern counties.

Workers' Compensation Clients

We are pleased to identify among our clients insurance carriers, self-insured employers and administrators for self-insureds. We represent clients in the entertainment fields, aerospace and allied industries, toy manufacturers, oil companies, retail stores, sports and related entertainment entities, municipalities, universities, utilities, security services, nursing services, temporary agencies, and others. A partial list of current carrier clients includes:

• Chubb Group of Insurance Companies,
• Ace-U.S.A., Inc., and others.

The firm's self-insured administrator clients include:

• CNA ClaimPlus,
• ESIS,
• Crawford and Company,
• Gallagher Bassett,
• AIG,
• Broadspire and
• Liberty Mutual, among others.

We proudly include among our employer clients:

• Southern California Gas Company,
• 20th Century Fox,
• The Walt Disney Company,
• Mattel, Inc.,
• Lockheed Martin Corporation,
• Northrop Grumman,
• Nordstrom, Inc.,
• Chevron Corp.,
• The Boeing Co.,
• Pepperdine University,
• The Cheesecake Factory,
• TGI Friday's and the
• NBC/ Universal.

An Active Practice

Wasserman, Comden & Casselman develops and publishes industry-wide charts for many aspects of workplace injury, temporary disability, permanent disability and life pension benefits. A copy of our publication is available upon request. We have developed proprietary computer software to allow calculations of life pension potentials at any commutation rate.

Annually we organize and present a seminar for clients during which we explain recent case law developments and explore workers' compensation topics of interest. Members of the department frequently take part in presentations geared to specific client needs and at client requests.

Further, we often speak at workers' compensation industry events, including presentations at the California Manufacturers Association annual meeting and at the California Self-Insured Association Annual Symposium. We have provided counsel to a number of lobbyists involved in the legislative arena, including the California Coalition on Workers' Compensation, and the International Business Coalition.

Our Philosophy

It is our philosophy to thoroughly and aggressively prepare each matter we handle. We firmly believe that only thorough preparation will provide clients with the information needed to make the crucial decisions which determine the outcome of their litigation.

We view our role as litigators and advocates of clients' rights before the Workers' Compensation Appeals Board, and we conduct our practice consistent with that philosophy. Where we are asked to do so, we believe in sending a message that we will challenge adversaries in every aspect of their claim. Ultimately, we find that our reputation for doing so results in cost-effective savings to clients.

At the same time, we recognize that the client must make the decision whether to settle or to further litigate every case. We provide the client with the workers' compensation understanding necessary to make this decision consistent with its own business model. Our role is to facilitate the process by which clients determine when their cases do settle.

Committed To Close Communication with Clients

We know that the successful management of workers' compensation litigation depends on regular communications between counsel and client. We encourage use of e-mail, regular claims review meetings, and individual case strategy meetings to provide clients with the most effective tools for monitoring and participating in the decision making process.

Further, we maintain close relationships with general counsel and our client's appointed civil counsel. We make use of our access to the many experts who make up Wasserman, Comden & Casselman LLP to provide a seamless, comprehensive approach to overlapping legal issues, such as those that often arise under federal and state employment and anti-discrimination laws.

The firm's proven abilities in Workers' Compensation defense will assure that clients receive the best representation available. Operating out of two locations and utilizing state of the art computers running proprietary case management system, we deliver a wide range of services at a cost effective rate.

Principal Attorneys Take an Active Role

We take great pride in our ability to establish a relationship of trust with our clients. We earn that trust through prompt and regular communications with our clients and by quality control through the supervision of each case by one of the principals in the firm. Principals regularly meet with associates, often at no expense to the client, to provide input into case decisions and strategies.

We offer business and individual clients financial counseling and debt negotiating as well as business planning and asset management aimed at minimizing the adverse effects of bankruptcy, including the avoidance of various tax consequences.

Please contact Wasserman, Comden & Casselman to set up a consultation with one of the firm's workers' compensation defense lawyers.