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Daniel Richardson

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Daniel Richardson

Attorney at Law
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Biography

Daniel Richardson is an attorney in the Atlanta office of Hall Booth Smith. He specializes in defending employers in all aspects of workers compensation claims throughout Georgia. Previously he served as a trial attorney in the District Attorney’s office in Coweta County, where he successfully tried several jury trials and defended verdicts through appeals to the Georgia Court of Appeals and Supreme Court of Georgia. Currently, he represents school districts; insurance companies; industrial companies specializing in flooring, roofing, and automobile manufacture; and several small businesses. Daniel has extensive experience negotiating and mediating claims to successful resolution. Though many claims resolve through settlement, he is also adept at defending claims at an administrative hearing and handling all levels of appeal. Daniel’s goal is to understand the needs of your business and to bring his expertise to bear in helping you meet those needs in a timely and cost-effective way.

Credentials

Admitted

State Courts:

  • Georgia, 2016
    • Court of Appeals, 2016
    • Supreme Court, 2016

Education

  • J.D., magna cum laude, Georgia State University, 2016
  • B.S., Industrial and Systems Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2010

Memberships

  • Coweta County Bar Association

Presentations

  • Controlling the Medical in Georgia Workers’ Compensation
    HBS Workers’ Compensation Webinar; January 11, 2024

Publications

In the Press

2024 Proposed Board Rule Changes in Georgia Workers’ Compensation

The State Board of Workers’ Compensation in Georgia has recently posted several proposed rule changes, which it expects to take effect starting July 1, 2024…

Prominence vs. Accessibility in Posting Panels in Georgia

The Georgia Court of Appeals recently handed down a claimant-friendly decision (Lilienthal v. JLK, Inc.) regarding how and where the required Panel of Physicians is to be posted. Under OCGA 34-9-200(a), an employer is required to furnish an injured worker with reasonably required medical treatment. OCGA 34-9-201(b)(1) satisfies that requirement by allowing the employer to

Returning Injured Workers to Work in Georgia

Written by: Daniel Richardson, Esq. The longer an employee stays out of work, the less likely they are to ever return. And workers compensation claims become increasingly expensive when employees do not return. To manage this exposure, it is important to have a good return-to-work program and to communicate clearly regarding your expectation that you

OSHA & Whistleblower Complaints: Wells Fargo Ordered to Pay $22 Million

Written by: Daniel Richardson, Esq. As employers seek to provide a safe workplace, it is imperative that no retaliatory action be taken against employees who choose to exercise their rights under the Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Act or other statutes designed to protect employees. Doing so can be quite costly. Section 11(c)(1) of the

OSHA Announces a National Emphasis Program to Protect Workers from Heat Hazards

Written By: Daniel Richardson On October 27, 2021, OSHA published in the Federal Register an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) on the issue of Heat Injury and Illness Prevention in Outdoor and Indoor Work Settings. According to this Notice, heat is the leading cause of death among all weather-related phenomena. “Excessive heat exacerbates existing

Change-in-Condition SOL and the Mailbox Rule in Georgia

Written by: Daniel Richardson, Esq. When a claimant files a hearing request, the first thing to check is whether there is an applicable statute of limitations defense. The Georgia Court of Appeals recently addressed a statute of limitations defense raised in a claim for a catastrophic designation in Sunbelt Plastic Extrusions, Inc. v. Paguia, 2021

Georgia’s COA Applies Supreme Court’s Overruling of Lunch Break Exception

Written by Daniel Richardson, Esq. Last year the Georgia Supreme Court addressed the collision of two separate lines of precedent that the Court of Appeals had been trying to hold together with confusing results. This involved (1) the Scheduled Break Exception and (2) the Ingress and Egress Rule. In 1935, the Supreme Court first enunciated

Remote Work and COVID-19

Written by: Daniel Richardson, Esq. and Peter Skaliy, Esq. Before COVID-19, many companies were experimenting with remote work. It has now become a widespread reality. This creates unique worker’s compensation risks, even as it may decrease the likelihood of some of the more serious or even catastrophic claims. An employee’s home environment is less subject

GA Court of Appeals: A Shooting at Home Found Compensable

Written by: Daniel Richardson, Esq. Jay Kil was a restaurant manager of Legend Café. He oversaw the restaurant, operated the cash register, ensured orders were correct, and oversaw cleanliness. He lived with restaurant owner Willmore Lim, and after each workday, they would spend around an hour at home reviewing the day’s sales, receipts, accounts, and