Key Takeaways
- Fewer attorneys nationwide are willing to take workers’ comp cases as benefit cuts make them less viable to pursue, according to a Wall Street Journal investigation.
- New York attorney fees for workers’ comp cases are contingent and reviewed individually by the Workers’ Compensation Board, not fixed at a flat rate, so cost shouldn’t keep an injured worker from seeking help.
- More than 160,000 New Yorkers filed workers’ comp claims in 2025, even as total benefit payouts statewide fell by roughly 37% over the past decade.
- Injured workers can often pursue a third-party claim, separate from workers’ comp, against a negligent property owner, general contractor, or equipment manufacturer, especially under New York Labor Law §240 and §241(6).
- Leav & Steinberg recently secured $6.45 million for a union laborer hurt on a Manhattan construction site by pursuing exactly this kind of third-party claim.
Why Fewer Lawyers Are Taking Workers’ Comp Cases Nationwide
A recent investigation by the Wall Street Journal (1) uncovered a troubling trend playing out across states: the pool of attorneys willing to represent injured workers in workers’ compensation cases is shrinking. As benefit cuts and lower payouts have made these cases less viable for young attorneys to pursue, injured workers in some states are increasingly left to fight insurance denials on their own.
This raises important questions for injured workers in New York, like: What happens when workers’ compensation doesn’t cover the full cost of your injury? And how do you maximize your opportunity to recover?
If you’ve been hurt on the job, you’d be well-advised to speak with an experienced New York workers’ comp attorney at Leav & Steinberg for a free consultation to discuss your rights and ability to recover under workers’ compensation and other potential avenues.
A National Warning Sign
According to the Journal’s reporting, states including North Dakota rolled back workers’ compensation benefits decades ago to protect businesses and their budgets. This type of legislation shrank the awards available to injured workers, thereby making these cases less desirable for lawyers to pursue.
In North Dakota, for example, the situation is so dire that only two workers’ comp attorneys remain, and they are both nearing retirement age. For injured workers without an attorney, this means appeals go unfiled, and expensive medical treatment often goes unrecovered.
How New York’s Workers’ Compensation System Compares
Under New York Workers’ Compensation Law § 24 (2), attorney fees aren’t fixed at a flat rate like they are in some other states. Here, feeds are contingent – meaning that workers’ compensation attorneys only get paid if the injured worker receives an award or settlement, and each case is reviewed by the Workers’ Compensation Board individually based on work performed and benefit obtained.
New York’s stats do reveal some troubling data, nonetheless. Based on the Workers’ Compensation Board’s 2025 Annual Report (3), more than 160,000 New Yorkers filed claims in 2025. Over the past decade, however, reporting on insurance data (4) found that the total benefit payouts to injured workers fell by roughly 37% in New York, even as insurers’ profits grew by billions of dollars over the same period.
Claim delays are also a common source of frustration for New York City employees, specifically. Reporting (5) on the city’s self-insured workers’ comp program found that the NYC Law Department, which handles claims for municipal employees, has been cited more than 10,000 times a year since 2022.
Why Workers’ Comp Alone May Not Be Enough
Workers’ comp benefits are limited by law and don’t account for pain and suffering. In exchange for guaranteed, no-fault benefits, injured workers generally give up the right to sue their employer directly.
But that trade-off doesn’t apply to other parties whose negligence contributed to the accident, such as a property owner, general contractor, equipment manufacturer, or negligent driver on a job site.
For construction workers, this is especially significant. New York Labor Law § 240 and § 241(6) allow claims against property owners and general contractors, separate from and in addition to workers’ comp claims, when unsafe conditions on a job site cause injury. Our firm recently secured a $6.45 million settlement for a union laborer injured on a Manhattan construction site by pursuing exactly this kind of claim. Efforts on this case resulted in our client recovering well beyond what workers’ comp alone would have provided.
How Leav & Steinberg Can Help
If you’ve been injured on the job in New York, you shouldn’t have to navigate a denied claim, a slow-moving appeal, or a lowball offer on your own. Nor should you assume that workers’ comp is the only avenue available to you. Our workplace injury attorneys are equipped to handle all aspects of your case. We work directly with skilled, specialized workers’ comp attorneys who ensure your rights are protected from the outset. Then the attorneys at Leav & Steinberg will make sure all aspects of your third-party case (the case against those who caused the physical injuries and suffering) are investigated and pursued, and that nothing is left on the table.
Just a few recent results of 2025 and 2026 in this area:
- $6,150,000 for a laborer injured when a caisson fell and struck him in the chest, causing him to fall and hit his head, resulting in a brain bleed and other injuries. Leav & Steinberg was retained in the first few days, and that early work resulted in this recovery.
- $6,450,000 for a worker who was monitoring the flow of traffic at a job site and directing a truck inside when that truck struck a yoduck, causing that yoduck to strike the plaintiff. This 33-year-old worker sustained significant spinal and arm injuries and would not be able to return to this work.
- $1,500,000 for a crossing guard struck by a vehicle while in the course of his job. This 68-year-old man sustained soft tissue injuries as well as a mild traumatic brain injury. We recovered the full limits of the insurance and some of the excess insurance policy.
If you or a loved one has been injured at work, contact Leav & Steinberg for a free consultation with a deeply experienced New York workers’ compensation lawyer. Call us at (347) 408-2947 to speak with an attorney about your specific case and path to recovery.
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