“Eman at Yazdchi Law was extremely professional, responsive, and supportive at all times. He and his staff exceeded all of my expectations.”
Andrea Dalessandro
✦ Board-Certified Specialist in Workers’ Compensation Law — State Bar of California ✦
Don’t settle for less. We negotiate every dollar your case is worth.
By Eman Yazdchi, Esq. · Certified Specialist in Workers' Compensation Law
When you have been injured working in or around Taft's oil fields, settlement is usually the most important decision in your workers' comp case. The difference between a fair settlement and a lowball offer can be tens of thousands of dollars — money that an injured oil field worker and their family desperately need.
Yazdchi Law P.C. represents Taft workers in settlement negotiations at the Bakersfield Workers' Compensation Appeals Board. Attorney Eman Yazdchi is a California State Bar Board-Certified Specialist in Workers' Compensation Law, and he uses that expertise to evaluate settlement offers against the true value of each case.
There are two primary types of workers' comp settlements in California:
A Stips agreement establishes your level of permanent disability, your right to future medical treatment, and the amount of permanent disability payments you will receive over time. Your case remains open for future medical care related to your injury. This is often preferable when you have ongoing medical needs — which is common with oil field injuries involving chemical exposure, burns, or spinal damage.
A C&R is a lump-sum settlement that closes your case entirely, including future medical care. In exchange for a larger upfront payment, you give up the right to come back for additional treatment or benefits. This can make sense in certain situations, but it is risky if your condition could worsen — which is a real concern with oil field occupational diseases.
Both types of settlements must be approved by a Workers' Compensation Administrative Law Judge at the Bakersfield WCAB to ensure they are adequate and in the worker's interest.
Several factors determine how much your workers' comp settlement is worth:
Permanent disability rating. This is based on the American Medical Association Guides to Permanent Impairment, adjusted for your age, occupation, and future earning capacity under California's rating schedule. Oil field workers often receive higher ratings because their physically demanding occupations are significantly impacted by musculoskeletal and respiratory impairments.
Future medical treatment needs. If your injury requires ongoing care — surgery, medication, physical therapy, respiratory treatment — the cost of that future care must be factored into any settlement. For Taft workers with chemical exposure conditions, lifetime pulmonary care can be worth substantial amounts.
Lost earning capacity. If you cannot return to oil field work and must take a lower-paying job, that lost earning capacity has value in settlement negotiations.
Employer violations. If your employer violated safety regulations, failed to carry adequate insurance, or retaliated against you for filing a claim, penalties under LC §132a and LC §5814 can increase the total recovery.
Lowball offer after a back injury. A rig worker suffers a lumbar disc herniation lifting heavy equipment near the Midway-Sunset field. The insurer offers a $25,000 C&R settlement before the worker has even reached maximum medical improvement. The worker contacts Yazdchi Law, and after proper medical evaluation and depositions, the case settles for significantly more — reflecting the true extent of permanent disability and future surgical needs.
Occupational disease undervalued. A 20-year oil field veteran in Taft develops COPD from chronic chemical exposure. The insurer's medical examiner attributes the condition primarily to personal factors. Yazdchi Law retains an independent pulmonologist who documents the occupational causation, resulting in a settlement that properly reflects the severity of the condition and the cost of lifetime respiratory care.
Multiple body parts, single incident. An explosion at an oil processing facility near Taft injures a worker's hands, face, lungs, and hearing. Each body part is rated separately for permanent disability, and the combined rating produces a settlement substantially higher than if the case had been treated as a single injury. Experienced settlement negotiation ensures nothing is left out.
Third-party settlement in addition to workers' comp. A Taft worker is injured by defective equipment manufactured by a third party. The workers' comp claim settles for permanent disability and medical care, while a separate product liability suit against the manufacturer provides additional compensation for pain, suffering, and punitive damages — money that workers' comp alone cannot provide.
Attorney Eman Yazdchi has the board certification, the courtroom experience, and the medical-legal knowledge to evaluate whether a settlement offer reflects the true value of your case. Insurance companies know which attorneys will accept their first offer and which will fight. Board-certified specialists who regularly try cases at the Bakersfield WCAB get better settlement offers because insurers know the alternative is a hearing they may lose.
What Yazdchi Law provides:
Injured at work in Taft? Call (661) 273-1780
Tap to call →Insurance companies handling Taft oil field claims know exactly what they are doing. Their adjusters are trained to minimize payouts, and their early settlement offers are designed to close cases cheaply before workers understand the full extent of their injuries. Once you sign a Compromise and Release, there is no going back.
Contact Yazdchi Law P.C. before you accept any settlement offer. Attorney Eman Yazdchi will review the offer, evaluate your case, and tell you honestly whether the number reflects what your claim is worth. The consultation is free, and the advice could be worth thousands. Call today.
Ready to discuss your case? Schedule a free consultation.
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