“I want a different lawyer.”

This is the most common misconception in this area, and it keeps people in representation they are unhappy with.

How it works

You file a Substitution of Attorney with the Appeals Board. The new attorney typically handles it.

Your former attorney may assert a lien for the value of their work. That lien comes out of the same single fee the judge approves — no attorney may demand or accept a fee until the Board has approved it, and the Board approves one fee for the case.

Your case does not restart. The ADJ numberADJ number Your case number at the Appeals Board., the medical record, the panel, and every deadline carry over untouched.

Before you switch

Ask for a status update in writing. Some of what feels like neglect is a case that is genuinely waiting on a medical report — and some of it is not. The written answer tells you which.

Ask specifically: what is the next step, what is it waiting on, when is it expected, and what deadlines are pending.

And know that some things are outside anyone’s control. A case cannot resolve on permanent disabilityPD Permanent Disability. Compensation for lasting impairment. A different and much lower weekly rate — 2026 maximum $290/week. until you are permanent and stationaryP&S / MMI Permanent and Stationary / Maximum Medical Improvement. Your condition has plateaued — not that you are healed. Temporary disability ends here.. That is medicine, not effort. How long cases take.

Reasons to switch that are real

Nobody returns your calls or answers written requests.

Deadlines are being missed — a DORDOR Declaration of Readiness to Proceed. Forces the calendar. You have 10 calendar days to object, or objections to proceeding on its issues are waived. objection window, an IMRIMR Independent Medical Review. The appeal from a UR denial. 30 days (10 if the dispute is only over drugs on the MTUS Drug List). request, a supplemental report never obtained.

Nobody has explained your rating or checked the rating stringRating string The row of numbers encoding your entire permanent disability calculation. Checkable arithmetic..

Nobody has looked at whether there is a third-party claim, a cumulative traumaCT — Cumulative trauma Injury from repeated exposure over time. The largest injury category in California and the least claimed. claim, a SIBTFSIBTF Subsequent Injuries Benefits Trust Fund. Pays where a pre-existing disability plus an industrial injury produce a substantially greater disability. Rewritten by SB 171 in July 2026. claim, or a § 4553 petition.

Or you are being pushed toward a Compromise and ReleaseC&R — Compromise and Release A lump sum that closes future medical treatment permanently. without a lifetime cost projection in a case with future medical needs. Why that matters.

And if you would rather not have a lawyer at all

You may represent yourself, and every DWCDWC Division of Workers’ Compensation, part of the Department of Industrial Relations. Administers the system. Information Services Center: 1-800-736-7401. district office has a free Information & Assistance officer who helps with questions and forms. The DWC Information Services Center is 1-800-736-7401. Where the offices are.