Matter of Pandolfi v. Plainedge Union Free Sch. Dist.

# Pandolfi v. Plainedge Union Free School District ## What Happened An employee filed a workers' compensation claim with the Plainedge Union Free School District. During the case, the employee's attorney was removed without being replaced by another lawyer. The Workers' Compensation Board denied payment of fees to the original attorney. ## What the Court Decided New York's Appellate Division reversed the board's decision. The court found that the law does allow an attorney to receive fees even after being replaced, as long as the attorney did work on the case before leaving. ## Why This Matters for Workers This ruling protects employees' ability to pay attorneys who help them with workers' compensation claims. Even if you switch lawyers or fire your current one, the original attorney can still receive fair payment for their work. This ensures that experienced lawyers are willing to take workers' compensation cases, knowing they'll get paid for their efforts. The case was sent back for the board to reconsider the fee amount.