When Texas lawmakers created the Workers’ Compensation Act, they wanted to give employers a choice: they may either join the workers’ compensation system or opt out of it. To encourage participation, the law offers a trade-off. Employers who join are generally protected from most employee lawsuits. Those who choose not to participate, known as non-subscribers, keep their right to operate outside the system, but they lose many of the traditional legal defenses they could otherwise use if an injured worker sues them.
Although non-subscribers don’t have many legal defenses to rely on, they aren’t completely without options. Because their choices are limited, they often try to use every defense they can to avoid paying for an injured worker’s losses. One tactic they might use is called the Post-Injury Waiver Defense. This defense only applies if the injured employee signs a document after the accident, agreeing to give up their right to file a claim or lawsuit against the employer.
The Houston oilfield injury attorneys at Parks Law understand the Post-Injury Waiver Defense and how often it is used to cheat workers out of their rights and deny them the ability to pursue financial compensation for their work-related injuries.
Legal Defenses for Employers Who Do Not Subscribe to Workers’ Compensation
Common defenses used by Texas employers in oilfield injury lawsuits include:
- Known hazard
- Pre-existing injury
- Self-inflicted injury
- Employee intoxication
- Not within the course and scope of employment
- Sole proximate cause
- Job routine
- Post-accident waiver defense
What is a Post-Injury Waiver?
The clue is in the name. “Post” meaning “after,” “injury” referring to you’re injury, and a “waiver” is a document you sign, forfeiting specific rights. When you think about it, asking someone to sign something like that after an accident, especially if they don’t understand what it means, seems a bit deceptive. And that’s rather the point.
At first glance, it may sound like any old scrap of paper could count as a Post-Injury Waiver, but the Texas Labor Code Section (section 406.33) imposes strict rules about what constitutes a valid waiver. The problem is that a lot of injured workers sign these waivers without agreeing to or even fully understanding the legal requirements. Employers create these waivers for one reason: to protect themselves against economic fallout. In reality, Post-Injury Waivers exist for the sole purpose of shielding to shield employers from work injury lawsuits.
When you look at the law, it’s clear that workers are given several important protections. For example, any waiver signed before an injury happens is automatically invalid. The same goes for any agreement signed within 10 days of the accident. The injured worker must also have seen a doctor for more than just emergency treatment and must fully understand what they’re signing. To help ensure that, the law requires key parts of the waiver to be printed in a larger font or a different color so they stand out.
When you look at these legal requirements, it’s clear that the law was written to protect injured workers. In the past, some employers tried to offer small payments to injured employees in exchange for signing a Post-Injury Waiver. These payments were usually far less than what the worker actually needed to recover. In those situations, the workers almost always ended up losing out while the employers saved money.
Post-Injury Waiver Warnings
If there’s one thing we want you to know, it’s that even if you choose not to hire us, we still want to be a reliable source of information for you. To that end, here is some important advice about post-injury waivers:
- Don’t sign a waiver if you’re offered one. Signing it takes away your legal right to file a claim or sue for work injury compensation.
- If you already signed a waiver, don’t panic. Many of these documents are written in a rush or use confusing legal language, which can make them invalid.
- If you signed something you don’t fully understand, get legal help. An experienced work injury attorney can review the document and explain your options clearly.
The thing to know about Post-Injury Waivers is that they basically act as a settlement. An employer might offer an injured worker some money, but only if the worker agrees to sign a waiver giving up their right to pursue further legal action. These types of waivers are sometimes included in settlements reached during a lawsuit. The difference is that when you have a lawyer, they can properly assess what your case is really worth and make sure any agreement covers all your losses, not just the ones your employer wants to pay for.
If an injured worker signs a valid waiver and later tries to sue their employer, the employer can use what’s called the Post-Injury Waiver Defense. This means the employer will show the court that the worker signed a legal document giving up the right to hold them responsible for the accident. If the court decides the waiver is valid, the defense will succeed and the case will be dismissed, leaving the injured worker with no chance to recover compensation.
What If I’ve Already Signed Something My Employer Gave Me?
Unfortunately, many people treat the idea of having a lawyer review a document before signing it as just a cliché. But this advice is especially important for injured workers. While it is possible to challenge a Post-Injury Waiver after signing it, it’s much better to avoid that situation altogether. The best protection is to have a lawyer review any legal document before you sign, especially one that could affect your right to financial compensation.
Contrary to popular belief, asking a lawyer to review an injury waiver means more than just not trusting your employer; it also shows that you understand how important documentation is and that you are keen to protect your rights. Think about it this way: you wouldn’t sign a car loan or mortgage without reading it carefully first. Settlements in non-subscriber work injury cases can be worth even more than those kinds of agreements, which makes it even more important to have an experienced work injury attorney review any paperwork before you sign.
Do You Need a Houston Oilfield Injury Attorney?
If you were injured in an oilfield accident in Texas, the Houston oilfield injury attorneys at Parks Law, PLLC can help. For four generations, our lawyers have successfully represented thousands of injured Houston oilfield workers, including those who signed nonbinding Post-Injury Waivers. Call us at (713) 979-3500 or fill out our online contact form to schedule a free case review.