Violation of Law or Commission of Crime

As a general rule, an employee is not necessarily withdrawn from workers' compensation eligibility if he is injured while violating a law or committing a crime in furtherance of his job duties. Most often, the violation of a law or commission of a crime will affect an employee's receipt of benefits if, in the applicable state, it constitutes "wilful misconduct" or is the subject of its very own statutory provision giving a defense to the employer. The violation of a statute does not ipso facto equal "wilful misconduct." Rather, flagrancy and knowledge on the part of the employee are generally required for an act to rise to the level of "wilful."

Recovery of Costs, Attorney's Fees, and Interest in Workers' Compensation Actions

Generally, parties in workers' compensation actions are responsible for their own attorney's fees and costs. The amount of attorney's fees that can reasonably be charged to a claimant in pursuing his claim for benefits is specifically outlined in many state statutes. For example, some states will cap attorney's fees at a specified dollar amount; others will cap such fees at a designated percentage of the amount recovered as benefits by the claimant.

Representative Payees for Supplemental Security Income Beneficiaries

When a Supplemental Security Income (SSI) beneficiary is unable to manage his SSI funds, the Social Security Administration (SSA) appoints a representative payee to do so on behalf of the beneficiary. A representative payee can be an individual, organization, agency, or institution. Generally, an SSI beneficiary in need of a representative payee includes a child under age eighteen, a legally incompetent adult, and any other person who the SSA determines to be incapable of managing his funds.

Degrees of Disability and Corresponding Benefits

Temporary Disability

Standard of Conduct for Representatives of Social Security Claimants

Those individuals undertaking to represent a social security claimant, whether an attorney or a non-attorney, must adhere to a certain standard of conduct. In particular, representatives appearing on behalf of a claimant before the Social Security Administration (SSA) must comply with the SSA's Rules of Conduct and Standards of Responsibility for Representatives (Rules of Conduct).