Practice Areas and Legal Definitions

Workers' Compensation:
Workers' compensation is insurance that an employer is required by law to carry in case an employee is injured on-the-job or becomes ill, temporarily or permanently disabled, or fatally injured due to circumstances surrounding his or her job.

Although workers' compensation laws vary from state to state, covered medical care generally includes medical, surgical and hospital services, dental services, crutches, hearing aids, chiropractic treatment, physical therapy, nursing care and prescribed medications.  Additional monetary compensation may be provided if an injured employee is temporarily unable to work for more than a certain number of calendar days set by state law, hospitalized as an in-patient, or becomes permanently disabled due to a job-related injury or illness.  The right to receive medical treatment at the employer's expense typically continues as long as treatment is reasonable and necessary to treat the injury.

Orthopedic injuries:
Orthopedic injuries can include injuries involving the spine, bones, joints, muscles, nerves and other parts of the skeletal system.  The most common orthopedic injuries are bone fractures, sprains and strains.  Sprains describe an injury to a ligament and strains describe an injury to muscle.  Treatment for orthopedic injuries include medical counseling, medications, casts, splints and therapies, such as exercise or surgery.

Repetitive Stress injury:
If an individual develops a repetitive stress injury (i.e. carpal tunnel syndrome, tendonitis, tennis elbow, etc.) from duties performed while on-the-job, he or she may receive workers' compensation benefits including their choice of doctor(s), full medical care compensation, lost wage benefits, a lump-sum cash settlement, vocational retraining or re-schooling and permanent wage loss benefits.

Construction/Industrial Accidents:
Construction labor makes up one of the three most dangerous occupations in the United States today; each year producing thousands of debilitating injuries and wrongful deaths.  Factors that contribute to construction accidents include workers lifting loads with worn and weathered cables, working on elevated platforms without fall protection or wearing defective safety harnesses and lanyards, and/or working in trenches with improper benching and using outdated tools and equipment.

Construction site personal injury law is not practiced nor understood by many personal injury attorneys.  As a result, many personal injury construction claims are often subject to mediocre representation and minimal financial compensation due to improper legal counsel.  Injured construction workers are urged to seek a workers' compensation attorney who is knowledgeable in a variety of construction techniques and has successfully litigated numerous construction site personal injury cases.

Burn Injuries:
People who have suffered and survived the agony of second, third and even fourth degree burns describe the pain they experienced as among the most severe of all traumatic injuries.  Personal injuries involving severe burns commonly result from explosions, premises fires, defective products, motor vehicle collisions, electric shock, as well as accidental exposure to harmful chemicals and radiation.

Toxic Exposure:
Due to the tremendous growth of corporate industry in the United States over the past fifty years, the number of dangerous, toxic substances in the environment has grown significantly.  Some toxic substances are shown to cause substantial injury to people, such as lead-based paint (linked to brain damage, especially in children), asbestos (linked to lung cancer and restrictive lung disease), dry cleaning and other solvents (linked to brain damage and major organ damage), pesticides such as dioxin and DDT (linked to birth injuries) and toxic landfill waste (linked to leukemia).

Retaliatory Discharge:
If an individual is terminated from their place of employment after reporting a workers' compensation claim, he or she could be entitled to substantial damages in a retaliatory discharge lawsuit against their former employer.

Federal laws prohibit an employer from discharging or discriminating against an employee because of a workers' compensation injury.  If an employer fires or forces the resignation of an injured employee in retaliation for filing a workers' compensation claim, the employee can file a civil lawsuit against the employer seeking damages in court, provided the employee has evidence of such an allegation.  Also, if an employer denies permission for immediate medical attention following a work-related injury, or does not permit an employee to seek out the services of other medical professionals in conjunction with assigned company doctors, the employee can seek legal retribution under workers' compensation laws.

If you or a loved one needs the legal representation of an experienced Philadelphia Workers’ Compensation attorney, call Martin, Banks, Pond, Lehocky & Wilson today at 866-435-2831, or complete the contact form provided on this site to arrange for a free consultation.

If you or a loved one needs the legal representation of an experienced Philadelphia Workers’ Compensation attorney, call Martin, Banks, Pond, Lehocky & Wilson today at 866-435-2831, or complete the contact form provided on this site to arrange for a free consultation.

ADDRESS OF THE FIRM:
Martin, Banks, Pond, Lehocky & Wilson
1818 Market Street,
35th Floor
Philadelphia, PA 19103
Phone: 866-435-2831
Hours: M-F, 8:00AM-5:00PM

MEMBERS OF THE FIRM:

• Attorney George Martin

George Martin is the founding and current managing partner of The Workers' Compensation Firm - Martin, Banks, Pond, Lehocky & Wilson. A graduate of New York University School of Law, Mr. Martin is active in the Pennsylvania Trial Lawyers Association, where he served on the Board of Governors for nine years. He was the first chair of the Pennsylvania Trial Lawyers Association Workers' Compensation Section.

A past President of the Philadelphia Trial Lawyers Association, and the first workers' compensation attorney to serve in the position, Mr. Martin remains a life member of their Board of Governors. He is currently the President-Elect of the American Association of Justice Workers' Compensation Section.  He served as Co-Chair of the Workers' Compensation Section of the Philadelphia Bar Association in 1995 and served on the Board of Governors as the representative of the Section in 1996 and 1997. He has served as a Council Member of the Pennsylvania Bar Association Workers' Compensation Section since 1987 and has served as their Chairperson, Chair-Elect, Vice Chair, Secretary and Treasurer.

Mr. Martin devotes considerable time to continuing legal education and has lectured on behalf of the Pennsylvania Bar Association, the Pennsylvania and Philadelphia Trial Lawyers Associations, the Philadelphia Bar Association, the Pennsylvania Defense Institute, and numerous other organizations. He is co-author of the 1990, 1992, 1994 and 1996 editions of Pennsylvania Workers' Compensation Practice and Procedure, published by the Pennsylvania Bar Institute. He is listed in "Best Lawyers in America" since 1997 and was selected as a Pennsylvania "Super Lawyer" every year the selections were held.  He placed in the Top 100 "Super Lawyers" in both Philadelphia And Pennsylvania in 2006 and 2007.

• Jurisdictions Attorney is Licensed in: Pennsylvania, 1974
• Education: New York University School of Law, J.D., 1971; University of Delaware, B.A.
  
• Professional Memberships: Member of New Hampshire Bar Association; Member and past president of Strafford County Bar Association; Charles C. Doe Inns of Court, Life Fellow; New Hampshire Bar Association.

• Attorney Jerry M. Lehocky

Jerry M. Lehocky has been a litigator of workers’ compensation, Social Security disability and personal injury litigation since being admitted to practice in 1985. Initially, his practice involved representing employers and insurance companies. In 1991, Mr. Lehocky began representing claimants exclusively in the areas of workers’ compensation and Social Security disability. A proficient writer and speaker, Mr. Lehocky has written numerous articles and publications and lectured extensively on various issues involving the practice of workers’ compensation law.

As Chairman of the Pennsylvania Trial Lawyers Association Workers’ Compensation Section, Mr. Lehocky is involved in the organization's lobbying efforts against recent amendments to the Pennsylvania Workers’ Compensation Act and was instrumental in authoring Act 147 of 2006. He has been invited to meet with the Governor and the Pennsylvania House Labor Relations Committee on workers’ compensation issues and served as a consultant to several State Legislators. In 1997, Mr. Lehocky received the Legal Leader Award from Philaposh for distinguished service to injured workers of Pennsylvania. He also earned an accommodation of dedicated service from the State Senate of Pennsylvania for his efforts on behalf of injured workers in Pennsylvania.

Mr. Lehocky continues to serve on the Board of Governors of the Pennsylvania Trial Lawyers Association and was selected to sit on the Board of Directors of the Volunteers for the Indigent Program. He is a member of the Workplace Injury Litigation Group, a national organization designed to address workplace issues, and a committee member of the Disciplinary Board of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania. In 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007, Mr. Lehocky was selected by Law and Politics and Philadelphia Magazine as a Pennsylvania “Super Lawyer” and placed in the Top 100 "Super Lawyers" in 2006.

• Jurisdictions Attorney is Licensed in: Pennsylvania, 1985
• Education: Temple University School of Law, J.D., 1985; Allegheny College, B.A., 1982
• Professional Memberships: American Bar Association; Pennsylvania Bar Association; Philadelphia Bar Association; American Trial Lawyers Association; Pennsylvania Trial Lawyers Association: Board of Governors, Chair, Workers' Compensation Section; Philadelphia Trial Lawyers Association.

• Attorney Matthew L. Wilson

Matthew L. Wilson has limited his practice to Pennsylvania workers' compensation law since 1988. He originally represented agencies with the City of Philadelphia, major insurance carriers and self-insured corporations. After his affiliation with two major defense firms, Mr. Wilson was recruited by his partners in 1993 to work to protect the rights of injured workers. He frequently lectures to other lawyers on workers' compensation in a variety of subject areas. He is co-author of the Pennsylvania Bar Institute's Workers' Compensation Practice and Procedure Manual, which is known among attorneys and judges as the "bible" on workers' compensation law.

Since 1997, Mr. Wilson has been a featured speaker at the biennial "Tough Problems in Workers' Compensation" seminar. He has also presented multiple lectures at the spring and fall meetings of the Pennsylvania Workers' Compensation Section as well as the statewide biannual practice and procedure program. In 2006, Mr. Wilson began serving a two-year term on the Workers' Compensation Law Section Council of the Pennsylvania Bar Association. He is an active member of the Pennsylvania and Philadelphia Trial Lawyers Associations as well as the Workplace Injury Litigation Group.

• Jurisdictions Attorney is Licensed in: Pennsylvania, 1987
• Education: Rutgers University School of Law, J.D., 1986; Rutgers University, Eagleton Institute of Politics, M.A., 1984; Rutgers University, B.A., 1984
• Professional Memberships: Pennsylvania Bar Association: Workers' Compensation Law Section Council; Philadelphia Bar Association; Pennsylvania Trial Lawyers Association; Philadelphia Trial Lawyers Association.

• Attorney Halmon L. Banks, III

Halmon L. Banks, III is a partner in the firm and exclusively represents claimants in Pennsylvania workers' compensation cases. He has served as Chair of the Workers' Compensation Section of the Pennsylvania Bar Association. He is an active participant in various seminars for the Pennsylvania Bar Institute, serving as a Course Planner and speaker. He lectures in the area of workers' compensation and has authored numerous articles on the topic.

A graduate of Clarion University and Villanova University School of Law, Mr. Banks is a former Assistant City Solicitor for the City of Philadelphia. In that capacity, he defended the City of Philadelphia in civil cases and Pennsylvania workers' compensation cases. He joined Martin, Banks, Pond, Lehocky & Wilson in March 1987 and now only represents injured workers in Pennsylvania workers' compensation cases. He is admitted to practice in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania as well as before the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.

• Jurisdictions Attorney is Licensed in: Pennsylvania, 1985
• Education: J.D., Villanova University School of Law, 1985; B.A., Clarion University, 1982;
• Professional Memberships: Pennsylvania Trial Lawyers Association; Philadelphia Trial Lawyers Association; Pennsylvania Bar Association; Philadelphia Bar Association