Whether you're new to this area of law or just want to learn some tips and tricks of the other side, this practical instruction will deliver the foundational knowledge and approaches needed to avoid common errors and achieve favorable outcomes when handling workers' compensation claims. Come away with valuable procedural techniques, as well as medical and disability benefits insights. Order today!

1. South Carolina Statute and Case Law Update
2. Preparing Your Case
3. The Doctor's Viewpoint of Medical Aspects
4. Informal Conference
5. The Settlement Process
6. The Hearing
7. Appeals
8. Ethical Considerations

Continuing Education Credits:   

* denotes specialty credits

1. South Carolina Statute and Case Law Update
   9:00 - 9:30, Written by Erroll Anne Hodges.
   Presented by Erroll Anne Hodges in Greenville and Kirsten L. Barr in Charleston.
2. Preparing Your Case
   9:30 - 10:30, Written by Brian P. McElreath.
   Presented by Erroll Anne Hodges in Greenville and Brian P. McElreath in Charleston.
   1. Case Evaluation
   2. Crucial Evidence to Obtain
   3. Statute of Limitations - Critical Steps When Time is of the Essence
   4. Evaluation of Disability Benefits
   5. Employer's Attorney: Crucial Evidence and How to Obtain It
   6. Depositions
      1. When is Taking Depositions Necessary?
      2. Deposing Doctors: Mistakes to Avoid
   7. Properly Filing the Claim: Do's and Don'ts
   8. Affirmative Defenses
   9. Fraud
3. The Doctor's Viewpoint of Medical Aspects
   10:45 - 11:45, Written by Thomas W. Greene.
   Presented by John P. Griffith and Dr. David Shallcross in Greenville and by Thomas W. Greene and Dr. Steven Poletti in Charleston.
   1. Causation
   2. Importance of Medical History and Client Credibility
   3. Use of the AMA Guides
   4. Performing an Impairment Rating Evaluation
   5. Disability Evaluations and Ratings
   6. Functional Capacity Evaluations
   7. Maximum Medical Improvement (MMI)
   8. What Constitutes a Good IME
4. Informal Conference
   11:45 - 12:15, Written by David H. Keller.
   Presented by David H. Keller in Greenville and Kirsten L. Barr in Charleston.
   1. Preparation
   2. At the Conference - Mediation Strategies
   3. Post-Mediation Conference Settlements
5. The Settlement Process
   1:15 - 2:00, Written by Mitchell K. Byrd.
   Presented by Mitchell K. Byrd in Greenville and Tucker Cecil and Sarah G.J. Verstraten in Charleston.
   1. Determining the Settlement Range
   2. Types of Settlements
   3. Settlement Agreements
      1. What Should be Included?
      2. Period of Time for Which Benefits are Paid
      3. Critical Language
   4. Pitfalls to Avoid When Settling Cases
   5. Post-Settlement Issues
6. The Hearing
   2:15 - 3:00, Written by Lynnley D. Ross.
   Presented by John P. Griffith in Greenville and Lynnley D. Ross in Charleston.
   1. Overview of the Hearing Process
   2. Evidence Admissibility and Submission
   3. Hearing Strategies
      1. Preparation: Streamline Your Case
      2. Submission of Stipulations
      3. Presentation of Evidence
      4. Questioning Witnesses: What Questions Should be Asked?
      5. Objections
7. Appeals
   3:00 - 3:30, Written by Kirsten L. Barr.
   Presented by Mitchell K. Byrd in Greenville and Kirsten L. Barr in Charleston.
   1. When an Appeal Makes Sense
   2. Administrative
   3. Judicial Proceedings
8. Ethical Considerations
   3:30 - 4:30, Written by Kirsten L. Barr.
   Presented by David H. Keller in Greenville and Kirsten L. Barr in Charleston.
   1. Scope of Discovery
   2. Communication With Injured Party and Medical Providers
   3. Responsibility to be Candid With the Court
   4. Bordering on Fraud
   5. Conflicts Between the Insurer and the Insured

MITCHELL K. BYRD is an associate with the firm of Willson Jones Carter & Baxley, P.A. in Greenville, South Carolina. He earned his B.A. degree from Wofford College and his J.D. degree from the University of South Carolina, where he served on the A.B.A. Real Property, Probate, and Trust Journal, and was a member and secretary for fundraising and alumni relations for the University of South Carolina Moot Court Bar. Mr. Byrd was admitted to the South Carolina Bar in 2004. Prior to joining the firm, he served as an assistant solicitor with the 13th Circuit Solicitor's Office as an economics crime prosecutor. Mr. Byrd is a member of the Greenville Bar Association and currently practices exclusively in the area of workers' compensation defense.

JOHN P. GRIFFITH of Smith & Griffith, LLP, practices law in Anderson, South Carolina and handles cases on behalf of claimants/plaintiffs statewide. Mr. Griffith focuses his practice on workers' compensation, Social Security disability, insurance and nursing home neglect cases. He was a law clerk to South Carolina Circuit Judge Gerald C. Smoak from 1994 to 1995 and a judicial extern/law clerk to Louisiana 4th Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Steven R. Plotkin from 1993 to 1994. Before law school, Mr. Griffith worked for more than three years as an insurance adjuster for two major insurance companies in South Carolina. He has been licensed in South Carolina as an insurance adjuster and appraiser since 1988. Mr. Griffith earned his B.A. degree from The Citadel and his J.D. degree from Loyola University, New Orleans. He is a member of the American Bar Association, the South Carolina Bar, the Anderson County Bar, South Carolina Workers' Compensation Educational Association, Injured Workers Advocates, the American Association for Justice, the South Carolina Association for Justice, the Million Dollar Advocates Forum and the Southern Trial Lawyers Association.

ERROLL ANNE HODGES is an attorney with McAngus Goudelock & Courie, LLC in Greenville, South Carolina. Ms. Hodges practices in the areas of workers compensation and labor and employment law. She has extensive experience representing self-insured employers and insurance companies before the South Carolina Workers' Compensation Commission and in the court system. Ms. Hodges also counsels business and industry on employment law, supervisor training in workers' compensation, the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Family Medical Leave Act. She frequently speaks on specific types of injuries and the relationship between federal legislation and South Carolina workers' compensation law. Ms. Hodges earned her B.A. degree from the University of Virginia and her J.D. degree from the University of South Carolina School of Law. She is a member of the Defense Research Institute, the Greenville County Bar Association, South Carolina Women Lawyers, the South Carolina Defense Trial Attorneys' Association and the South Carolina Self-Insurers Association. She also is a member of the South Carolina Bar. Ms. Hodges was selected for inclusion in the 2009, 2010 and 2011 editions of South Carolina Super Lawyers.

DAVID H. KELLER is of counsel at the law firm of Constangy, Brooks & Smith, LLP in Greenville, South Carolina. He practices primarily in the areas of workers' compensation, employment law and family court mediation. Mr. Keller is a former attorney for the South Carolina Supreme Court and a former staff attorney for the South Carolina Workers' Compensation Fund. He is an adjunct professor in paralegal studies at Greenville Technical College. Mr. Keller is the former editor of the workers' compensation volume of South Carolina Jurisprudence. He earned his B.A. degree from the University of Houston and his J.D. degree from the University of South Carolina. Mr. Keller is a member of the Greenville and American (member, Employment and Labor Law Section) bar associations, the South Carolina Bar (member, Workers' Compensation Section), and the South Carolina Defense Trial Attorneys Association, and serves as immediate past president of the South Carolina Self-Insurer's Association. He is on the board of managers of the National Council of Self-Insurer's.

DR. DAVID SHALLCROSS is the medical director of pain management at Greenville Hospital System University Medical Group. His interests include all aspects of a general practice in physical medicine and rehabilitation. Dr. Shallcross' specific responsibilities include management of inpatients and outpatients with a wide range of conditions, including musculoskeletal injury, chronic pain, sports injuries, spinal cord injury, traumatic brain injury, stroke, total joint replacements and amputees. He has a special interest in EMG/NCV's and is focusing more of his attention on treatment of injured workers and program direction of worker's compensation rehabilitation programs. Dr. Shallcross is board certified by the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, licensed by South Carolina Board of Medical Examiners, and is a certified independent medical examiner and diplomat of American Board of Pain Medicine. His awards include: Outstanding Intern of the Year, Sandoz Award for Outstanding Student in Psychiatry, and the Sloan National Scholar, and he is a member of the Alpha Omega Alpha honor society. Dr. Shallcross is also a member of the American Medical Association, American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, American Paraplegia Society, American Association of Orthopedic Medicine, South Carolina Medical Association, South Carolina Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and the Greenville County Medical Society. He earned his B.A. degree from Cornell University, his bachelor of medical science from Emory University and his M.D. degree from West Virginia University School of Medicine.

KIRSTEN L. BARR is an attorney in the Mount Pleasant law firm of Trask & Howell, LLC, where she practices workers' compensation defense. She has lectured on workers' compensation issues. Ms. Barr earned her B.S. degree from the University of Georgia and her J.D. degree from the University of South Carolina. She is a member of the Charleston Bar Association, the South Carolina Bar and the South Carolina Defense Trial Attorneys Association.

TUCKER CECIL is an attorney with Turner, Padget, Graham & Lany, P.A. Ms. Cecil's practice focuses on addressing workers' compensation matters. Her practice concentrates on the defense of businesses and people in complex workers' compensation claims. She actively tries and mediates many claims. She has worked closely with an extensive network of expert and legal support professionals in the Charleston community to provide access and solutions for her clients' legal needs. Ms. Cecil is a member of the South Carolina Bar, Charleston County Bar Association, South Carolina Workers' Compensation Education Association, South Carolina Women Lawyers Association, Edisto Open Land Trust and the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Center for Progressive Reform.

THOMAS W. GREENE of the Greene Law Firm, practices in Charleston, where his primary areas of practice are workers' compensation and personal injury. Mr. Greene earned his J.D. degree, with honors, from Emory University. He was a member of the South Carolina House of Representatives from 1968 to 1970 and was the circuit solicitor of the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit from 1970 to 1974. Mr. Greene is a member of the Charleston County Bar Association, the South Carolina Trial Lawyers Association, the Association of South Carolina Claimant Attorneys for Workers' Compensation (ASCCAWA), the American Bar Association and is a sustaining member of the American Trial Lawyers Association.

BRIAN P. MCELREATH is an attorney at Luzuriaga Mims, LLP, focusing his practice on state and federal workers' compensation cases, including concurrent jurisdiction claims arising under the South Carolina workers' compensation Act and the Longshore and Harbor workers' compensation Act. He also practices in the areas of construction and general litigation. Mr. McElreath received his B.A. degree in economics jointly from North Carolina State University and the University of North Carolina at Asheville. He received his J.D. degree from the Charleston School of Law where he was a member of the Maritime Law Bulletin. Mr. McElreath is actively involved on behalf of the firm in Charleston's waterfront community as a member of the Maritime Association of South Carolina, the Propeller Club of Charleston and the National Defense Transportation Association.

DR. STEVEN POLETTI is in practice at Southeastern Spine Institute in Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina. He has authored numerous publications, including "Open Subtalar Dislocations," Orthopaedic Transactions, 4: 1991. Dr. Poletti has been a frequent presenter, including the South Carolina Workmans' Compensation Conference and the Educational Conference for South Carolina Workmans' Compensation. He is a member of the American Medical Association, North American Spine Society, American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgery, South Carolina Medical Association, Charles County Medical Society and Charleston Orthopaedic Society. Dr. Poletti earned his B.S. degree, magna cum laude, from the University of Santa Clara and his M.D. degree from the University of California, California College of Medicine. He is board certified by the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.

LYNNLEY D. ROSS is an attorney practicing with the firm of Willson, Jones, Carter & Bradley, LLC, in Charleston, and concentrates her practice in workers' compensation law. Her article “Will the Disparate Impact Theory of Recovery be Allowed Under the ADEA?” was published in the Pittsburgh Lawyers Journal in November 2004. Ms. Ross  earned her B.A. degree, cum laude, from Clemson University and her J.D. degree, cum laude, from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, where she served as senior operations manager for the Law Review. She is a member of the South Carolina Bar, the Charleston County Bar, the Defense Trial Lawyers Association and the Workers' Compensation Education Association.

SARAH G.J. VERSTRATEN is an attorney with Turner, Padget, Graham & Lany, P.A. Her practice areas include construction litigation, personal injury litigation and premises liability. She is admitted to the South Carolina Bar. Ms. Verstraten received her B.S. degree, cum laude, from the College of Charleston and her J.D. degree, cum laude, from Charleston School of Law. Ms. Verstraten served as a lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force and served on active duty for nearly five years at Dover Air Force Base, Delaware. She also served at the Defense Distribution Center in New Cumberland, Pennsylvania, where she was awarded the Air Force Commendation and Achievement Medals, and was named Dover AFB Personnel Manager of the Year and Mission Support Squadron Company Grade Officer of the Year.

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