Charles Candiano

• Free Consultation
  You and I will discuss your claim until I am satisfied that I can help and your questions are answered, WITHOUT cost or obligation.
• Contingent Fees
  Our fee on Personal Injury cases is 1/3 of the recovery and costs. Our fee on Workers' Compensation cases is set by statute at 20% of Settlement or Award and costs

Illinois

Since 1995

Indiana

Since 1996

Federal Circuit

Since 1995

Owner

Candiano Law Office

2013 - Current

Trial Attorney

The Margolis Firm, PC

2004 - 2013

Trial Attorney

Margolis & Velasco

2001 - 2004

Trial Attorney

Rusin, Patton, Maciorowski & Friedman

2000 - 2001

Deputy Prosecuting Attorney

Office of the Prosecuting Attorney, Lake County Indiana

1996 - 1999

The John Marshall Law School

J.D. (1995)

Chicago Bar Association

Chair Professional Fees Committee

2017 - Current

Indiana State Bar

Member

2006 - Current

Illinois Trial Lawyers Association

2001 - Current

Q. Can I sue my husband for intentional infliction of emotional distress

January 23, 2025

A: Ms. Powell is correct that it is technically possible. That said, litigation is terribly expensive (you will need to pay in advance) and you need to consider whether your husband would be able to pay. More importantly, money isn't going to keep you from being repeatedly injured by your husband. You need to report these incidents AND ALL SUBSEQUENT INCIDENTS to the police!!! You should also seek an Immediate Restraining Order against your husband. On your facts, it would be summarily granted.

Q. Do I need to release all of my medical records for a workers compensation injury?

January 22, 2025

A: 1st of all, you need to understand that your employer is legally entitled to all medical records from any care that they pay for related to your work injury, IRRESPECTIVE of whether you give them permission. Unless your work injury involves a psychological injury or other specially protected health information like HIV status, it is absolutely appropriate to withhold permission to access any such records. No other restrictions are reasonable. It is important for you to understand that nobody is interested in your medical records and it is very expensive to have someone review your medical records so if the workers' compensation carrier didn't have some good faith belief for requesting past medical records, they wouldn't. The scope of your medical records released to the workers' compensation carrier should be the least of your concerns for reasons that your attorney should be happy to explain to you. all

The fact that the medical release was sent to you confirms that you do not have an attorney. There is an old union saying: "It doesn't cost, it pays to be a member of ________ (insert name of union)." In Illinois Worker's Compensation claims, that saying rings truer that it ever did about union benefits. When you hire an experienced workers' compensation attorney, you have continuous access to someone who can actually answer your questions, in context AND Though no attorney can guarantee or assure any outcome, it is the rare exception when an experienced attorney cannot negotiate a settlement that is far more than 20% Higher than anything you could negotiate which means your worst-case scenario is a free attorney. Moreover, there are multiple options for compensating a work injury in Illinois that go far beyond dollars and cents. Don't shortchange yourself. Hire an experienced workers' compensation attorney before you do inevitable damage to your claim. Good luck. ... Read More

Q. my attorney has not contacted me in over a year what can i do im still in pain with my injury

January 21, 2025

A: I'm sorry to hear about your situation. I wish I could tell you that it was unique. Client communication is the single biggest complaint lodged against attorneys, though I appreciate it is no consolation for you. When you hired your attorney, you should have had a long discussion about the game plan going forward, what your attorney expected you to do, and what you could expect from your attorney. Surprise, most work comp clients never have that conversation with their attorney because it takes a lot of time and it yields no income for the attorney. Your attorney should have instructed you that it was critically important for you to continue to receive whatever medical care you need and for you to be paid your TTD benefits, each week. It goes without saying that if anything prevented you from securing medical care ordered by your doctor or if your weekly benefits were interrupted, it was your job to contact your attorney immediately so that your attorney could speak with the defense attorney, with the adjuster, or file the appropriate motion before the Illinois Worker's Compensation Commission.

Your attorney also should've explained to you that while you were off work, it is illegal to deduct anything (other than Court-Ordered child support) From your weekly checks so when you are injured, it is necessary for you to contact human resources, immediately, and offer to voluntarily pay your contribution toward your health insurance. Your attorney can make your employer pay for any medical care that is related to your work injury but you still need health insurance. If your health insurance lapses and you have an emergency appendectomy, you could be looking at medical bills of $50,000 or more.

There is probably no good excuse that your attorney did not contact you for more than a year but this isn't "don't ask, don't tell." Right now, you need to contact your attorney's office and make an appointment for an in-person or Zoom videoconference with your attorney ASAP. You need to prepare questions for this meeting. If you don't write down every question that you want to ask your attorney, I guarantee that you will forget half of them or time will run out and your attorney will legitimately need to excuse himself/herself before half of your questions are answered. You should also consider sending a copy of your questions to the attorney, in advance of your meeting. That way, your attorney would have an opportunity to secure input from opposing counsel or the insurance company.

Many people in your situation want to fire their attorney. BE CAREFUL!!! according to you, your attorney has been working for you for more than one year. Whether your attorney has done a great deal of work or whether your attorney has done very little beyond filing your claim with the Commission, your attorney is entitled to a percentage of your recovery and whether you have one attorney or 5 attorneys, it is ILLEGAL for you to pay a total fee in excess of 20% of your recovery. That means if you fire your attorney, you have to find an attorney who is willing to represent you for a discounted rate. Also remember that even when a Workers' Compensation attorney is working for full fee, the attorney is only charging you a little more than half what he charges to represent someone in an auto accident. It is truly imperative that you make every effort to rebuild your relationship with your current attorney before giving any thought to firing the attorney. If the attorney refuses to meet with you or refuses to take your calls or does not return your emails, memorialize it. Send the attorney an email or a letter with the facts: "Please allow this to memorialize that I contacted your office on__________ and __________ and ____________ but never received a return call, and they refused to schedule an Appointment for me to discuss my case." Send a letter by certified mail, Return receipt requested.

Good luck! ... Read More

View More Answers ›