Meet Chris Puleo
Chris Puleo is a workers’ compensation attorney at the Jacksonville Beach office. Chris dedicates the majority of his time to helping people who were hurt on the job get the benefits they are due after a workplace accident. With a long list of highly successful case wins for his clients, Chris is exactly who you want leading your team when your workers’ compensation claim is denied, delayed, or underpaid.
Negotiating Cases Is What I Do Best
As a workers’ compensation attorney, I am representing my clients in front of a judge, a mediator, and/or the other side’s legal team. On the “other side” are attorneys working for the employer’s workers’ compensation insurance company. Their job is to minimize how much they pay out for claims and I’ve seen time and again where this is accomplished by either delaying, underpaying, or outright denying a claim when a worker is hurt on the job.
If you’re an injured worker, the law says you have every right to seek maximum compensation for your loss. As your attorney, it’s my job to stand in front of the other side and present a rock solid case on your behalf. After being in this area of the law for a number of years, one of my greatest strengths is negotiating for the best settlement possible. I’m good on my feet in front of a judge because I can present effective arguments on my clients’ behalf. In the end, that translates into better results for my client, which is what it’s all about.
Client Communication Always Stands As a Priority
I love that workers’ compensation cases allow me the opportunity to be more hands-on with my clients and less focused on formalities. This is because of how these types of cases are handled by administrative judges rather than circuit judges. This means we can have more control over the different phases of the trial, more contact with the judge and other side’s attorneys, and ultimately seek better resolutions, faster.
Because I’ve got a lot of experience in workers’ compensation cases, I’ve really come to know the different players involved here locally. I’ve got great relationships with the different judges and even with the attorneys working for the insurance company. I’ve found when we approach a case professionally and with a good dose of common courtesy, we can work things out that much for the better.
I’ve Turned $0 Offers into Hundred Thousand Dollar Settlements
A case I’ll never forget involved a young lady who was working at a pharmacy when she went through the terrifying ordeal of being shot at during an armed robbery. Compounding this terrible event was the fact she was pregnant at the time. Thankfully the woman wasn’t struck with a bullet but did have bruises and went to the hospital. She also needed treatment to deal with the intense stress of such a horrific event. Well, the workers’ compensation insurance company wanted to deny the claim because they said there was a lack of physical injuries.
The case took three separate appeals and went all the way to the State of Florida District Court of Appeals, but in the end we were able to get her compensation for all of her medical bills and lost wages. Because of just how complex the case was, this case would even create new ways that these types of cases were handled at the District Court of Appeals. In the end, we took a claim that had been denied from zero dollars to a settlement worth hundreds of thousands for this very deserving woman who was injured simply doing her job and will bear internal scars for the rest of her life.
Helping Injured Jacksonville Area Workers Comes Naturally
I’m a local boy who grew up right in Jacksonville, where I loved surfing as often as I could. I don’t get to surf as much now, but I’m still a total beach bum and live in Neptune Beach with my wonderful wife. We raised our kids here and it’s where we’ll call home for as long as we’re blessed to.
Even though I’m headquartered here in Jacksonville Beach, I’m also lucky to be able to represent workers from across the state because of my keen experience solely doing the plaintiff’s side of workers’ compensation cases.
When I’m not at the Farah & Farah office in Jacksonville Beach, you can bet I’ll probably be hanging out at the beach with my family—it really is one of our favorite spots in town. If it’s football season, you can be sure I’ll be cheering on my alma mater, the Florida Gators, every game they play.
