With over a century of combined experience defending workers' compensation claims, we aggressively represent employers, insurance carriers, group funds, and third-party administrators in all phases of the litigation process throughout the State of Michigan. Our clients include Michigan businesses, employers with employees traveling through or injured in Michigan, and Michigan based employers conducting business throughout the world. When collateral issues arise, our clients benefit greatly from the instant access they have to other Foster Swift lawyers, in each of our six offices, who are experts in virtually every other legal discipline.
Our first priority is to provide a thorough and honest appraisal of your case. We work as a team, both internally and with you, to expeditiously and zealously advance your defense. Throughout the process, we will keep you continuously advised of all developments, while aggressively pursuing the most cost effective and favorable outcome possible.
Our reputation is based upon decades of cost effective and aggressive defense throughout the state. We represent employers, third-party administrators and insurance carriers before the Michigan Workers' Compensation Agency and court system on thousands of matters and have a history of great success from the trial stage through the appellate process.
Michigan has recently undergone significant change in the workers' compensation arena. We employ an aggressive internal training program to maintain our high level of expertise. The Foster Swift Workers' Compensation Practice Group is proud to have as part of its team, two adjunct law school professors and a former plaintiff's counsel.
Members of our group are listed in Best Lawyers in America and attorneys in our group have earned the highest ratings from Martindale Hubbell. We are always pleased to have the opportunity to provide educational seminars for our clients to keep them abreast of the evolving legislative changes and developing case law, and to suggest strategic options for claims handling.
Foster Swift has been named a Tier 1 firm in Workers' Compensation Law - Employers in Lansing by U.S. News – Best Lawyers® "Best Law Firms" in 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020.
REPRESENTATIVE CASES
- Shumaker v. Meritt Tool & Die & Eugene D. Miller, 2018 Mich App LEXIS 1610 (April 17, 2018) (unpublished).
Recent Blog Posts
- Are Death Benefits Owed When an Employee Dies after Contracting the Coronavirus?
- The Workers' Compensation Issues Raised by Coronavirus Pandemic and Michigan's Newly Promulgated Emergency Rules for "First Response Employees"
- Are You Paying Your Employees Enough to Keep Them?
- The Safeguarding America's First Responders Act - New Federal Law Provides Access to Death Benefits Program for Families of Public Safety Officers who Die as a Result of COVID-19
- Updated Protections for COVID-19 Response Employees: The Differences Between the Prior Emergency Rules and Recent Executive Orders
- Experience Rating in a Pandemic – New Proposal would Exclude COVID-19 Claims from Rate Calculation
- The CARES Act Unemployment Expansion, Workers’ Compensation Wage Loss Offset, and Refusing to Return to Work During the Pandemic
- Michigan Legislators Propose Amendment to Workers’ Compensation Law to Benefit Certain COVID-19 Positive Employees
- The Anticipated Rise in At-Home Work Injury Claims During the Coronavirus Pandemic
- Psychiatric Workers’ Compensation Disability Claims in a Pandemic Environment
Publications & Alerts
- Updated "Stay-at-Home" Order: Executive Order 2020-59, Foster Swift Legal Update E-blast, April 24, 2020
- Impact of Executive Orders on Reduction and Termination of Benefits, Foster Swift Workers' Compensation Update, April 2, 2020
- Updates to Workers' Compensation Issues Raised by Coronavirus and New Emergency Rules for "First Responders", Foster Swift Workers' Compensation Update E-blast, April 2, 2020
- Michigan's Emergency Rules Give Personal Injury Presumption to "First Response Employees" with COVID-19, Foster Swift Workers' Compensation Update E-blast, March 30, 2020
- The Workers' Compensation Issues Raised by Coronavirus Pandemic and Michigan's Newly Promulgated Emergency Rules for "First Response Employees", Foster Swift Workers' Compensation Update, March 20, 2020
- Is an Employee Injured before December 19, 2011 Obligated to look for Work?, Foster Swift Workers' Compensation Update, February 23, 2020
Events
- 2019 Comprehensive Guide to Employment Law, National Business Institute (NBI, November 13, 2019
- Your Employee is Hurt, but is it FMLA, ADA or Workers Comp?, Michigan Chamber of Commerce, March 7, 2019
- No, that Employee is NOT an Independent Contractor, Michigan Chamber of Commerce, January 31, 2019
- Hiring, Investigating and Discipline/Discharge in the Law, Foster Swift: Developing Labor Law Update, May 9, 2018
- Hiring, Investigating and Discipline/Discharge in the Law, Foster Swift: Developing Labor Law Update, February 7, 2018
- Can social media posts be used as evidence in defense of a workers’ compensation claim?, Stop Before You Crash: Workers' Compensation and Employment Law, March 22, 2017
News
- 18 Attorneys Selected to 2020 Michigan Super Lawyers and “Rising Stars”, September 18, 2020
- Foster Swift Attorneys Named to 2021 Best Lawyers in America©, August 20, 2020
- Birach Voted into SBM Section, June 22, 2020
- Workers’ Comp Defense Blog Provides Michigan Case and Legislative Updates, April 13, 2020
- Sanders Named to 2020 “Leaders in the Law", February 24, 2020
- Foster Swift Listed in Best Lawyers® "Best Law Firms" 2020, November 1, 2019
- 23 Attorneys Selected to 2019 Michigan Super Lawyers and “Rising Stars”, Automation Alley, September 3, 2019
Practice Contact
- 517.371.8147