I want to . . .
- Search for a workers’ comp case
- Know my rights
- Know what to do when I get hurt on the job
- Find a fact sheet or I&A guide
- Find a form
- Find a publication
- Find a report
- Find a DWC office
- Contact DWC
- File a complaint
- Participate in DWC rulemaking
- Participate in a DWC forum
- Participate in a WCAB forum
- Pay my bill online
- Learn about the DWC 19th annual educational conference
At the 24 Division of Workers' Compensation (DWC) district offices located around the state, sometimes called WCABs, employers, injured workers and others receive judicial services to assist in the prompt and fair resolution of disputes that sometimes arise from workers' compensation claims. Local district offices are a major part of the workers' compensation court system, where judges make decisions about cases. This process is the focus of the Claims Adjudication Unit, but other services for injured workers and employers are available at district offices. Most offices have information and assistance (I&A) officers on staff, who provide a variety of services to injured workers, employers and others. A primary duty of I&A officers is to help injured workers who don't have attorneys navigate the workers’ compensation system. Call 1-800-736-7401 for recorded information from I&A staff 24 hours a day, or contact a local office during business hours to reach a live person.
| Anaheim - AHM | Los Angeles - LAO
|
Riverside - RIV | San Jose - SJO |
| Bakersfield - BAK |
Marina del Rey - MDR | Sacramento - SAC | San Luis Obispo - SLO |
| Eureka - EUR |
Oakland - OAK | Salinas - SAL | Santa Ana - ANA |
| Fresno - FRE |
Oxnard - OXN | San Bernardino - SBR | Santa Rosa - SRO |
| Goleta - GOL |
Pomona - POM | San Diego - SDO | Stockton - STK |
| Long Beach - LBO | Redding - RDG | San Francisco - SFO | Van Nuys - VNO |
In August of 2008 the district offices converted from paper-based files to an electronic case management system called EAMS. Because the conversion to EAMS required changes in the way case documents are processed and how data is collected, the data on claims adjudication for 2008 is incomplete.
| Category | 2006 | 2007 | 1st & 2nd quarter 2008** |
| Total opening documents* | 143,194 | 138,615 | 69,590 |
| Declarations of readiness** | 302,175 | 335,599 | 164,711 |
| Hearings held | 357,945 | 333,421 | 161,575 |
| Decisions issued | 148,537 | 139,785 | 64,080 |
* Includes received applications for adjudication and settlement documents
** Data for claims adjudication activity in 2008 is for six months only - Jan. 1 through June 30. DWC migrated to EAMS during the 3rd quarter 2008 and data for the 3rd and 4th quarters is unavailable. There has been a break in the data series due to changes in document processing and calendaring in the new system and how data is now collected.
Claims adjudication activity 1997 - 2005
Forms may be obtained from the forms page of the DWC Web site or at local DWC district offices. Many forms needed to adjudicate a workers’ compensation claim are now submitted in optical character recognition (OCR) format so they may be scanned into EAMS. Injured workers who need assistance completing the forms can use the DWC injured worker guides. OCR forms samples for other filers are posted on the OCR forms page. Information about filing electronically is also available on the e-forms page.
April 2011