Two Kentucky Courage Attorneys Named to Kentucky Super Lawyers List for 2022

The law firm of Morgan, Collins, Yeast & Salyer is pleased to announce that partners Roy Collins and Kyle R. Salyer have been selected to the 2022 Kentucky Super Lawyers list.

Super Lawyers is a legal rating service that recognizes attorneys who have attained a high degree of professional achievement and peer recognition. Every year, Super Lawyers compiles lists of each state’s top attorneys in more than 70 practice areas. No more than 5 percent of the lawyers in a state are selected for recognition.

Despite the competitiveness of the selection process, both Roy Collins and Kyle Salyer have been listed by Super Lawyers multiple years in a row.

Roy Collins is recognized by Super Lawyers as a Top Rated Personal Injury Attorney in Manchester, Kentucky. He appears on the Kentucky Super Lawyers list for the fifth year in a row.

Attorney Kyle Salyer is recognized by Super Lawyers as a Top Rated Personal Injury Attorney in Paintsville, Kentucky. He has been selected to the Super Lawyers list each year from 2019 to 2022.

What is the Super Lawyers Award?

Super Lawyers selects outstanding attorneys in each state through a patented multiphase selection process for recognition in its publications. The Peer nominations and evaluations are combined with third-party research. Each candidate is evaluated on 12 indicators of peer recognition and professional achievement. The selections are made on an annual, state-by-state basis. The result is a credible, comprehensive, and diverse list of accomplished attorneys.

The Super Lawyers lists are published in Super Lawyers Magazine and in leading city and regional magazines.

Roy Collins has been with Morgan, Collins, Yeast & Salyer since 2000 and is the managing partner of the law firm. Since joining the law firm, he has devoted his legal career to helping fellow Kentuckians who are injured in car accidents and other types of accidents caused by the negligence of others. He is a highly regarded trial attorney.

In addition to recognition by Super Lawyers, he has been honored by the Million Dollar Advocates Forum, the Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum, the National Trial Lawyers Top 100 (Kentucky), and Rue Ratings’ Best Attorneys in America. He is a graduate of the University of Kentucky and the University of Kentucky School of Law.

As an experienced personal injury lawyer, Kyle Salyer handles cases involving defective products, medical malpractice, car accidents, truck accidents, workplace accidents, and slip and fall accidents.

In addition to Super Lawyers, he was named to the Top 40 Under 40 in Kentucky by the National Trial Lawyers Association. He also is a member of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum, the Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum, the Kentucky Justice Association, and the Christian Trial Lawyers Association. The National Academy of Personal Injury Attorneys selected him as a Top 10 Attorney for his effective legal representation of the injured. He is a graduate of Alice Lloyd College and Valparaiso University Law School.

A well-established Kentucky law firm, Morgan, Collins, Yeast & Salyer, PLLC has multiple offices throughout the state and attorneys who are known for their Kentucky Courage when fighting for the rights of hardworking people who are struggling to overcome serious injuries.

If you have been injured by the carelessness or negligence of someone else, the Kentucky Courage attorneys at Morgan Collins, Yeast & Salyer are ready to help. You may have seen their advertisements on television. The attorneys that you see on TV are the same ones you will work with if you contact Morgan, Collins, Yeast & Salyer to handle their case.

It’s important to speak with an attorney as soon as possible if you’ve been injured. We offer free consultations. Call (877) 809-5352 to speak to have a personal injury attorney review your case and discuss your legal options. Call today.

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Workers’ Comp If You Were Injured on Your First Day at Work

If you have just started a new job, you may not yet understand the full range of benefits your employer provides. But in Kentucky, one thing you can generally count on is that you are covered by workers’ compensation insurance. Most employers in Kentucky are required to provide workers’ compensation benefits for full and part-time employees.

Even if you are injured on the first day of work, your employer’s workers’ compensation insurance coverage extends to you. Anyone who is injured on the job and told they are not eligible for benefits should speak to a workers’ compensation lawyer as soon as possible.

An experienced workers’ compensation lawyer at Morgan, Collins, Yeast & Salyer in Lexington, KY, can help you obtain all of the workers’ compensation benefits you qualify for after a workplace injury. We know KY workers’ comp rules and regulations, and we know how some employers and insurers attempt to avoid their obligations. Contact us today to set up your free consultation.

Who Qualifies for Workers’ Compensation in Kentucky?

Kentucky law requires most businesses with one or more employees to provide workers’ compensation insurance coverage to their employees. This is a group coverage plan. Anyone who joins the group by being employed is automatically covered. Every employer in Kentucky must display proof of workers’ comp coverage at their office.

Under Kentucky workers’ comp laws, certain employees are exempt from coverage, including:

• Anyone employed in agriculture
• Domestic workers employed in a private home with fewer than two regularly employed workers
• Anyone employed temporarily as a handyman to do remodeling, maintenance, repair, or similar work in a home
• Members of a religious sect or organization that opposes insurance benefits
• Any person working in return for aid or sustenance for a religious or charitable organization

Employees can voluntarily reject workers’ compensation coverage by filing a Form 4 Waiver with the Department of Workers’ Claims. But Kentucky law prohibits employers from using Form 4 Waivers as a condition of employment.

Workers’ compensation is a no-fault insurance system. Individuals who are covered do not have to show that someone else was at fault to obtain benefits. An employee who is injured while on the job and is out of work for seven days qualifies for workers’ compensation benefits. You have a right to benefits, even when you get hurt on the first day at work.

Employers are responsible for paying workers’ compensation benefits, usually through insurance companies.

Workers’ comp insurance typically provides payments for:

• Medical costs
• Partial replacement of wages
• Return-to-work services, i.e., rehab, training/education

Workers’ comp insurance also provides specific scheduled benefits for disabling injuries and death benefits to a deceased worker’s immediate family.

What If I’m Injured On My First Day Of Work?

Any time an employee is injured while on the job, the injured worker should report the accident to their supervisor. The company may have a formal process for reporting on-the-job accidents and injuries. An injured employee should follow company policies for reporting an accident and/or injury as closely as possible.

If there is no formal process, be sure to follow up reporting your accident verbally by making a written report. This may be an email to your supervisor with your name, date, time, and what happened to you. This documents the fact that you were hurt and reported it.

You also need to see a doctor right away if you have been injured while on the job. Ask the doctor for a note if he or she says you need to stay home and give it to your employer. Keep a copy of it and all other documents related to your injury.

Filing a workers’ comp claim requires the injured employee to complete and submit an Application for Resolution of a Claim. Your employer may do this but has no legal obligation to do so. The Kentucky Labor Cabinet says on its workers’ compensation web page for injured workers, “Due to the complexity of the claims process, most injured workers hire an attorney to file a workers’ compensation claim for them.” A knowledgeable attorney can guide you through the claims process.

If your claim is approved, workers’ comp insurance should pay all of your medical bills related to the accident and about two-thirds of your weekly pay while you cannot work. The wage replacement benefits are known as temporary total disability benefits or TTD. Temporary total disability benefits end when you recover and can return to work or when your physician reports that you have reached maximum medical improvement.

If you have suffered a permanent disability from a workplace injury, you’ll be assigned a permanent impairment rating. The disability rating determines the amount of your permanent partial disability (PPD) or permanent total disability (PTD) payments.

If your claim is denied, there is an appeals process. You have several opportunities to demonstrate that you qualify for benefits. You will need an attorney to navigate the appeals process.

Many workers’ comp claims are denied because of technical errors, paperwork problems an attorney can identify and help you resolve. But if your employer’s insurance company is denying your eligibility for benefits, you need to keep in mind that they deal with the workers’ comp program every day. You need someone on your side of the table who knows the system and can help you present a full and accurate depiction of your injuries and qualification for benefits.

Get the Workers’ Comp Benefits You Deserve

If you are a worker in Kentucky injured on the job, it is very likely that you qualify to receive workers’ compensation benefits. But an employer afraid of higher insurance premiums or an insurer facing a potentially large payout may claim that you don’t qualify for benefits. Speak to a Morgan, Collins, Yeast & Salyer workers’ compensation lawyer to find out what you truly deserve in workers’ compensation benefits and let us help you pursue it.

Don’t take on an insurance company by yourself, and don’t take an insurer’s response of “claim denied” as the final word. Contact us now to schedule your free consultation. We will fight for all the benefits you are due and show them what Kentucky Courage means.

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Workers’ Comp and Cumulative Trauma Injury Costs

Everyone experiences some physical changes as a result of natural aging. But the strenuous physical demands of some jobs can cause workers to experience greater than expected degenerative changes, leading to the need for joint replacement, spinal fusions or other medical procedures.

A Kentucky worker who requires a knee or shoulder replacement or spinal surgery for a degenerative condition may qualify for workers’ compensation benefits including disability payments if their impairment was caused by the cumulative trauma of doing their job.

Some employers and insurers may dispute claims for workers’ comp benefits for cumulative trauma injuries, also known as wear and tear injuries. But workplace injuries that develop gradually over months or years can be just as disabling and serious as injuries from sudden accidents. Cumulative trauma injuries suffered because of job duties or working conditions are recognized by the Kentucky workers’ compensation system as compensable injuries.

The Kentucky workers’ compensation attorneys of Morgan, Collins, Yeast & Salyer have helped many workers obtain benefits for cumulative trauma injuries. We know the law and how to build persuasive cases. If you have questions about whether you may qualify for a workers’ compensation settlement for a cumulative trauma injury, contact us right away. We have the Kentucky Courage to stand up to big insurance companies and fight for you. We can schedule a free initial consultation to discuss your options available to you.

What is a Cumulative Trauma or Wear and Tear Injury?

A cumulative trauma injury or wear and tear is one in which damage to your body accumulates over time as you repeat certain motions and exert yourself to perform your job. The injury is due to excessive wear and tear on muscles, tendons and nerve tissues.

Kentucky’s workers’ compensation law acknowledges injuries caused by repeated stress and strain. At KRS 342.0011, definitions for Chapter 342, Workers’ Compensation, the statute says “Injury is defined as any work-related traumatic event or series of events, including cumulative trauma, arising out of and in the course of employment.”

To have a valid claim, you’ll need to have an established medical history including diagnostic tests that show greater than expected degenerative changes in the affected area of the body.  The condition must be related to work activity.

Types of Cumulative Trauma Injuries

A Kentucky worker who has suffered a cumulative trauma or wear and tear injury should not hesitate to explore the availability of workers’ compensation benefits.

Our workers’ comp attorneys at Morgan, Collins, Yeast & Salyer encourage workers to see their family doctor, get diagnostic tests to show the cumulative trauma and get a referral to a surgeon to evaluate whether surgery is needed. When possible, it’s best to take the initial steps while you are still employed.

You may qualify for an impairment rating and workers’ compensation benefits.

The types of conditions that may involve cumulative trauma and qualify an injured worker for workers’ compensation benefits include:

• Shoulder Surgery—Shoulder movement occurs in many work activities including lifting, pushing, pulling, and reaching. Shoulder injuries are common cumulative trauma injuries among workers who lift loads such as warehouse workers, grocery store stockers, and nurses’ assistants. Some injuries require partial or complete replacement of the shoulder ball-and-socket joint.
• Knee Replacement—Jobs that involve a lot of walking or climbing may lead to knee pain and stiffness that limit your mobility or cause you to walk with a limp. You may need a partial or complete knee replacement if you have experienced greater than expected degeneration of the knee joint as a result of your job duties.
• Hip Replacement—Jobs that involve bending, squatting, twisting, crawling, standing for long periods of time, and heavy lifting may put added stress on the hips and lead to a physical impairment requiring a hip replacement. Hip injuries can be caused by repetitive workplace activity.
• Degenerative Discs—Jobs that involve repetitive neck motions, working in awkward positions, or bending put extra stress on the neck and back Degeneration of discs between the vertebrae can put pressure on nerves and cause severe back pain, restricted movement, and loss of function. Spinal fusion surgery may be required to address degenerative discs in the cervical or lumbar region of the back.
• Carpal tunnel Syndrome—This repetitive stress injury involves compression of the median nerve as it passes through the carpal tunnel in the wrist due to inflammation. Jobs that can cause carpal tunnel syndrome include those that combine high force, high repetition, and awkward hand postures such as typing, data entry, assembly line work, meat processing packing, sewing, and cutting.
• De Quervain’s Disease— This injury is caused by excessive friction between the two thumb tendons and the sheath they share. The condition is often diagnosed in buffers/grinders, sewers and cutters, packers, and housekeepers.
• Raynaud’s Syndrome—Also called “vibration white finger” or “hand-arm vibration syndrome,” this condition causes numbness and tingling in the fingers. Ultimately, it leads to loss of sensation and muscle control in the fingers and hands. It is caused by forceful gripping or prolonged use of vibrating tools, such as hand-held power drills, power saws, needle guns, chipping hammers, and rotary hammer drills.
• Rotator Cuff Tendonitis—A rotator cuff injury involves swelling, and tearing of tendons in the shoulder often associated with work that requires the elbow to be in an elevated position for long periods of time, such as while performing overhead tasks.
• Trigger Finger Injury—This is an inflammation of the tendon sheath of a finger that causes the tendon to become locked in the sheath. Often associated with using tools that have handles with hard edges or ridges, or repetitive bending of the fingers with continued forceful gripping of equipment.

Treatment and Costs of Cumulative Trauma Injuries

The typical symptoms of cumulative stress injuries are pain, numbness, loss of motion, and loss of sensation. Treatment tends to escalate according to the intensity of pain or loss and includes combinations of:

• Rest
• Exercise programs to strengthen the tissue and minimize further injury
• Pain management techniques
• Steroid injections
• Braces or splints to immobilize the area
• Surgery (most commonly recommended to relieve the symptoms of carpal tunnel syndrome)

Cumulative trauma injuries cost workers lost income and businesses lost productivity. With serious injuries, workers may no longer be able to handle the physical demands of their former job.

The Kentucky Department of Workers’ Claims reports that in the fiscal year 2019-2020, there were 3,903 new applications for the resolution of claims, which means a disputed claim had to be resolved by an Administrative Law Judge. Among litigated injury claims, the three most common causes of injury were strains (1,433), falls, slips or trips (738), and cumulative trauma (437).

Contact a Cumulative Trauma Injury Attorney Today

Jobs that involve strenuous physical activity can cause cumulative trauma or wear and tear injuries. If you have developed a work-related cumulative trauma injury, you may be entitled to workers’ compensation benefits.

You’ll need the help of an experienced workers’ compensation who will fight for you to receive the full benefits provided by law. If you need help filing a workers’ compensation claim or appealing a denied claim, the Kentucky workers’ comp attorneys at Morgan, Collins, Yeast & Salyer are ready to help you seek the maximum compensation available by law.

Call us now at (877) 809-5352 or contact us online to schedule a free, no-obligation consultation, and put our Kentucky Courage to work for you.

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Where Do the Most Common Slip and Fall Accidents Occur?

Falls are a common form of injury. The National Safety Council says more than 8 million people were treated in emergency rooms for fall-related injuries in 2019, and 39,443 people died in falls at home and at work. The Kentucky Injury Prevention and Research Center (KIPRC) says 303 people in Kentucky died from falls in 2018, and another 11,979 required hospitalization after a fall.

Slip and fall accidents that lead to serious injury can happen anywhere to anyone. The KIPRC’s report published in February 2021 says falls were the leading cause of emergency room visits for nearly every age group except for 18-24-year-olds, for whom falls were exceeded only by motor vehicle accidents.

If your fall happens on someone else’s property, you may be eligible to seek compensation for your medical bills, missed time from work, or more. Property owners have a legal obligation to ensure their buildings and grounds are safe for lawful visitors. If they neglect safety concerns or fail to provide adequate warning of foreseeable hazards, they may be held accountable for slip and fall accidents.

In Lexington, KY, phone (877) 809-5352 to find out how the Kentucky slip and fall lawyers at Morgan, Collins, Yeast & Salyer can help you. An initial consultation is always free.

Most Common Causes of Slip And Fall Accidents

The KIRPC report, Kentucky Injury Indicators 2018, lists unintentional falls that led to fatalities, hospitalizations, and emergency department visits.

Among fatal falls, which happen mostly to the elderly, the most common types of falls reported were:

• Falls on the same level to the floor or ground – 29%
• Falls on or from stairs or steps – 7%
• Falls from furniture or a wheelchair – 5%
• Falls from heights – 4%
• Fall from one level to another – 3%

The nature of most fatal falls (52%) was unspecified.

Falls leading to hospitalization included:

• Falls to the same level from slipping, tripping, or stumbling – 29%
• Falls on stairs – 7%
• Falls from furniture – 6%
• Falls from one level to another – 3%
• Falls from or on a ladder – 2%
• Falls due to ice or snow – 2%
• Falls from a nonmoving wheelchair or nonmotorized scooter – 2%
• Falls from, out of, or through a building or structure – 1%

Falls treated at an emergency room but not requiring hospitalization included:

• Falls to the same level from slipping, tripping, or stumbling – 28%
• Other slipping, tripping, or stumbling falls – 13%
• Falls from or on stairs – 9%
• Falls from furniture – 7%
• Falls from one level to another – 6%
• Falls due to ice or snow – 2%
• Falls from or on a ladder – 2%
• Falls on or from playground equipment – 1%

Unspecified falls (28%) and other falls (3%) also led to ER visits.

In most cases reported, the individual slipped, tripped, and/or fell to the floor or ground. People also fall on stairs and steps, from furniture and ladders, and on ice and snow. Children fall from playground equipment. Falls from heights such as ladders or scaffolds often cause fatal injuries.

Common Places Where Slip and Fall Accidents Occur

You could slip and fall at any time, no matter your age or health. We typically see clients whose slip-and-fall accidents have happened in parking lots or on the premises of:

• Grocery stores, department stores, big-box stores, malls, convenience stores, boutiques, and other retail establishments
• Restaurants
• Motels and hotels, including hotel banquet/meeting facilities
• Banks, government offices and other worksites and office buildings
• Theaters, stadiums, and arenas
• Parks and playgrounds
• Hospitals, doctors’ offices, clinics, and other medical centers
• Apartment and condominium complexes
• Retirement and nursing homes, where residents often fall
• Private homes.

People slip, trip and fall because of:

• Wet and slippery floors caused by spills or tracked-in rain and snow, or by mopping, waxing, buffing.
• Cluttered aisles, floors, and walkways
• Loose carpets, rugs, mats, floorboards, tiles, or paving stones that shift or slide when stepped on
• Tears and holes in carpets, rugs, mats, floorboards, and linoleum that trip people
• Broken or loose stairs, stair treads, or handrails that give way with the weight of users
• Unguarded or unmarked potholes in parking lots or yards
• Poor lighting in walkways, stairwells, or parking garages
• Malfunctioning elevators and escalators that start or stop abruptly or stop misaligned with floors or landings.

What to Do After a Slip and Fall Accident

If you slip or trip and fall and are injured in a public place, such as at a grocery store, an office building, or a theater, you should report the injury to management, orally and in writing. Get the owner’s contact information. You should see a doctor right away. The property owner needs to know about the hazard and your accident, and you need to have your injuries treated. But these contacts also document the fall and injury in case you have a slip-and-fall accident claim.

A slip-and-fall accident claim may be possible if:

• You were injured in a fall on someone else’s property
• You had a legal right to be on the property
• The owner neglected their duty of safety to visitors to their premises
• The harm you suffered is a result of the property owner’s negligence.

An example would be a fall at a grocery store caused by a hazard, such as a broken bottle of juice. If the staff had had reasonable time to discover the spill but had failed to clean it up or post a warning to avoid the spill, then the store may be considered negligent for injuries that occur.

You should document everything you can about a slip-and-fall injury with photos and written notes, receipts from medical visits, and speak to a slip and fall accident attorney. An attorney can advise you and, if there is potential for a claim, move to secure evidence, investigate, and file a claim on your behalf.

Contact a Kentucky Slip and Fall Accident Lawyer

If you have been injured in a fall accident on someone else’s property in Kentucky, contact Morgan, Collins, Yeast & Salyer as soon as possible. Our slip and fall lawyers can assess your potential claim in a free and confidential meeting. If our investigation indicates negligence on the property owner’s part, we’ll press hard for compensation for you.

It takes courage to stand up and say you were wronged by some company’s negligence. Let us back your Kentucky Courage with ours. Contact us now at (877) 809-5352 or online to get started on your claim for compensation you are due today.

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