The Flint Journal & Genesee County Bar Association's "Ask the Attorney"

MACDONALD, FITZGERALD & MACDONALD, P.C

Q. I was injured at work, but my employer's insurance company won't pay me workers' comp. Will I have to sue? Where will my case be heard? (Dec 2009)

A. Michigan workers' compensation cases not resolved through settlement are decided in non-jury trials before magistrates appointed by the Governor. A claim is started by filing an Application for Benefits. There is no filing fee. Workers injured in Genesee and Lapeer Counties have their cases heard at the Flint Workers' Compensation Agency, currently located on Bristol Road. The Michigan workers' compensation act since 1915 has required that the hearing be held "at the locality where the injury occurred." Some people are trying to close the Flint Agency to require local disabled workers to drive to Detroit or Saginaw to pursue their claims, but the Granholm/Cherry Administration has continued to maintain the Flint hearing site open and accessible to the nearly half million people living here. Call us if you need further assistance.

Atty. Robert J. MacDonald
--December 2009 column