By Matthew C. Jones, Illinois Workers’ Compensation Attorney | Last reviewed August 2026 Case result: McHargue & Jones recently won an Illinois workers’ compensation arbitration decision authorizing a spinal cord stimulator trial for a worker with chronic low-back and leg pain. The arbitrator found the injured worker credible, relied on the treating doctors over a…
By Matthew C. Jones, Illinois Workers’ Compensation Attorney Quick answer: Yes. McHargue & Jones handles workers’ compensation cases in Joliet and throughout Will County. Our office is in Chicago, but we regularly appear for Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission status calls, hearings, and trials in Joliet. We have represented employees of Amazon, Grainger, Caterpillar, Ascension Saint…
By Illinois Workers’ Compensation Attorney Matthew C. Jones Case result: McHargue & Jones won a contested Section 19(b) hearing for an Illinois State employee after the State argued that her fall at work was idiopathic or otherwise unrelated to her employment. Gallagher Bassett administered the claim as the State’s third-party administrator, and the Illinois Attorney…
By Illinois Workers’ Compensation Attorney Matthew C. Jones Quick answer: Many falls at work are covered by Illinois workers’ compensation, but coverage is not automatic merely because the accident happened at the workplace. The employee must generally prove that the fall arose out of and occurred in the course of employment. Water, condensation, snow, ice,…
McHargue & Jones, LLC has filed an Illinois workers’ compensation claim with the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission on behalf of a coworker who was at the scene of the reported Nippon Paint Automotive Americas workplace shooting in Lansing. The claim involves alleged PTSD, emotional distress, and psychological trauma connected to the reported workplace violence event….
Quick answer: Yes. Home health care workers are often covered by Illinois workers’ compensation if they are injured while doing their job. That can include injuries inside a patient’s home, while helping transfer or lift a patient, after a fall on someone else’s property, from a dog bite, during an assault, or in a car…
By Illinois Workers’ Compensation Lawyer Matthew C. Jones Quick answer: Usually, yes. Violating a workplace safety rule does not automatically disqualify you from workers’ compensation in Illinois. If you were still doing your job or another activity connected to your employment, the violation may amount only to negligence—and workers’ compensation benefits are generally paid regardless…
By Illinois Workers’ Compensation Lawyer Matthew C. Jones Teachers and school employees in Illinois may be entitled to workers’ compensation benefits when they are injured while doing their jobs. This can include student assaults, special education injuries, recess injuries, field trip accidents, playground injuries, slip-and-falls, lifting injuries, classroom accidents, repetitive trauma, PTSD, concussions, and injuries…
By Illinois Workers’ Compensation Attorney Matthew C. Jones Many Illinois police officers, sheriff’s deputies, correctional officers, jail staff, state troopers, and other law enforcement employees may be entitled to workers’ compensation benefits when they are injured in the line of duty. These claims can involve obvious traumatic events, such as shootings, inmate attacks, violent arrests,…
Quick answer: You can win an Illinois workers’ compensation case if the evidence proves that your injury is work-related, you gave proper notice, and the medical records support the benefits you are asking for. Illinois workers’ compensation is generally a no-fault system, which means you usually do not have to prove your employer did something…
By Illinois Workers’ Compensation Lawyer Matthew C. Jones If you were hurt at work in Illinois and your doctor has you off work, one of the first questions is usually simple: when do I get paid from workers’ comp? The short answer is that Illinois workers’ compensation has a short waiting period before wage benefits…
By Illinois Workers’ Compensation Attorney Matthew C. JonesIf you injured your elbow at work in Illinois, the value of your workers’ compensation case depends on more than the diagnosis. A minor elbow strain that heals with therapy is very different from a fractured elbow requiring surgery, cubital tunnel syndrome with nerve symptoms, tennis elbow that…
If you were hurt at work and are thinking about quitting your job, you need to be careful. In Illinois, you can legally quit your job while you have a workers’ compensation claim. No one can force you to keep working for an employer you want to leave.But quitting while you are on workers’ comp…
If your employer or the insurance company says you have to resign or quit your job to settle your workers’ compensation case, do not sign anything until you understand what is happening. In Illinois, there is an important difference between being fired or punished for filing a workers’ comp claim and an employer refusing to…
If you were hurt while working for Southwest Airlines, your workers’ compensation case may involve more than simply reporting the injury and waiting for benefits. Southwest Airlines workers’ comp claims in Illinois can involve Sedgwick, IMEs, impairment ratings, back injuries, flight attendant jurisdiction issues, settlement disputes, and questions about whether the case should settle or…
