Workers’ compensation covers many costs that follow a job injury, but it was never designed to address every loss. It does not compensate you for pain and suffering, and its wage loss benefits replace only a portion of your income. When someone other than your employer caused the accident, you may have a second path to recovery: a third-party claim.
A third-party claim is a personal injury action against a person or company outside your employment relationship whose negligence contributed to your injury. Because it is a civil claim, it can seek damages that workers’ compensation does not provide. Working with a Minneapolis third-party compensation lawyer who understands both systems helps you pursue every available source of recovery while protecting your existing benefits.
At Osterbauer Harper & Furth Law Firm, our attorneys practice both workers’ compensation and personal injury law. That combination matters in third-party cases, where the two claims run side by side, and a decision in one can affect the other.
Minnesota’s workers’ compensation system is no-fault. You can receive benefits without proving anyone was careless, but in exchange, workers’ compensation is generally the only remedy available against your employer. In most cases, you cannot sue your employer for a workplace injury.
That limit does not extend to outside parties. If a negligent driver, a defective product, or another company’s unsafe work contributed to your injury, you may be able to bring a separate claim against them while still receiving workers’ compensation benefits.
The two claims differ in important ways:
Fault: Workers’ compensation does not require proof that anyone was at fault. A third-party claim does, so evidence of negligence or a product defect is central to the case.
Damages: Workers’ compensation provides wage loss, medical, and rehabilitation benefits. A third-party claim can also seek compensation for pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, and the full value of lost earnings.
Process: Workers’ compensation disputes are handled within the workers’ compensation system. A third-party claim is a civil action, known in the legal community as a tort action, which may be resolved through negotiation or litigation in court.
A Minnesota third-party liability attorney evaluates both claims together, so you understand what each one can provide and how they fit into one strategy.
A third party can be any person or business other than your employer that played a role in causing your injury. Common examples include:
Negligent drivers: If another vehicle hit you while you were driving for work, making deliveries, or traveling between job sites, the driver who caused the crash may be liable.
Equipment and product manufacturers: Machinery, tools, vehicles, or safety gear with a design or manufacturing defect can support a product liability claim against the company that made or distributed it.
Contractors and subcontractors: On construction sites, crews from several companies often work in the same space. When another contractor’s crew creates a hazard, that company may be responsible.
Property owners and managers: If you were injured on premises owned or controlled by someone other than your employer, such as a customer’s building, the owner may be liable for unsafe conditions like ice, poor lighting, or unsecured materials.
Outside service companies: Businesses hired to maintain equipment or a property may share responsibility when their work falls short.
Identifying every potentially responsible party is one of the earliest steps a liability lawyer handles. Some cases involve more than one outside party, and overlooking one can limit your compensation.
Third-party claims frequently arise from serious injuries that change how a person works and lives. Our attorneys have represented workers with a wide range of serious injuries, including:
When an injury is this serious, the gap between workers’ compensation benefits and your actual losses can be large. A Minneapolis third-party compensation lawyer works to document that gap through medical records, wage information, and testimony about how the injury affects your daily life and your ability to earn a living.
Pursuing a third-party claim does not mean giving up workers’ compensation. In many cases, both claims move forward at the same time. The two are connected, though, in ways that call for careful handling.
When workers’ compensation has paid benefits, the employer or its insurer generally has a right to be reimbursed from a third-party recovery. This is known as subrogation. Minnesota law sets out how a third-party recovery is divided, and that division can affect both the money you receive now and the benefits available to you later. In some situations, the insurer can pursue the third-party claim itself if the injured worker does not.
Because of these rules, any settlement in your third-party claim should be reviewed alongside your workers’ compensation claim, never on its own. A Minnesota third-party liability attorney reviews how a proposed settlement interacts with your workers’ compensation claim, including ongoing wage loss and medical benefits, before you agree to anything. Our attorneys also guide clients through related workers’ compensation decisions, such as whether to continue ongoing benefits or accept a lump sum settlement.
Many workers spend their days on the road, on job sites shared with other companies, or inside facilities their employer does not own. Delivery drivers, construction crews, healthcare workers who travel between locations, and service technicians visiting customer properties all face risks created by people outside their own company.
Our attorneys have represented workers in a wide range of occupations, including nurses and hospital staff, construction workers, manufacturing and factory workers, and police officers, firefighters, and other first responders. Because our attorneys handle both workers’ compensation and personal injury cases, we can review whether a work injury may also support a claim against an outside party.
Our office is in Minneapolis, and our team handles cases throughout Minnesota, from the Twin Cities to Rochester, Duluth, and the rest of greater Minnesota. If traveling is difficult after your injury, we can meet with you over the phone, at our office, or near your home or work. Speaking with a Minneapolis third-party liability lawyer soon after your injury gives you more time to gather and preserve the evidence your claim will depend on.
Evidence in third-party cases can disappear quickly. Vehicles are repaired, equipment is fixed or replaced, and witnesses become harder to reach. These steps help protect your rights:
Report the injury to your employer and get medical treatment right away
Write down the names of any outside companies, drivers, or contractors involved
Photograph the scene, the equipment, and your injuries if you are able
Collect contact information from anyone who saw what happened
Keep copies of medical records, pay stubs, and letters from insurance companies
Avoid giving a recorded statement to a third party’s insurer before speaking with an attorney
Third-party claims also carry their own legal deadlines, which differ from workers’ compensation timelines. Acting early keeps your options open.
Since 1992, Osterbauer Harper & Furth Law Firm has helped injured workers and their families pursue fair compensation. Our attorneys have litigated every category of workers’ compensation claim and also handle personal injury litigation, so clients have one team that understands both sides of a third-party case.
76 years of combined attorney experience
More than 15,000 cases handled to date
14 Super Lawyers recognitions
Contingency fee representation, so you pay nothing unless we win
Free consultations by phone, in our office, or near your home or work
Attorneys Joseph Osterbauer, Benjamin J. Harper, and Amanda Furth handle both workers’ compensation and personal injury litigation, so your benefits claim and your third-party case are managed with the full picture in view.
If someone outside your employer contributed to your work injury, you may be entitled to more than workers’ compensation provides. Contact us today for a free consultation. Call or text our lead attorney, Joe Osterbauer, at 612-334-3434, or reach us through our online contact form.
