Florida Stop-Work Order Defense Attorney
Stop-Work Orders and Penalties
The State of Florida requires all employers to maintain Workers' Compensation insurance coverage for all employers in the construction industry as well as all other employers that have more than three employees on the payroll. The Division of Workers' Compensation has investigators that conduct inspections to determine if an employer is in full compliance. An investigator may inspect records and conduct interviews of employees and independent contractors to locate information which indicates a failure to comply.
If the State determines that a business is not in full compliance by maintaining workers compensation for all employees at the job site or place of business, the State may issue a Stop-Work Order requiring that employer to cease any further operations at the inspected locations or even at multiple locations at which the employer is conducting business. This means your operations come to a halt while the Division determines the amount of your penalty. Penalties are often calculated incorrectly and employees are commonly misclassified. This results in a penalty assessment that is far larger than what you should have to pay.
Many employers simply pay the full amount in an effort to quickly have their Stop-Work Order lifted and get back to work as soon as possible. This troubling situation makes it vital that you immediately get the help and advice of an experienced Florida employment defense attorney specializing in the handling of Stop-Work Orders and Penalty Assessments.
How We Can Help
This can be a very confusing and enormously expensive process that often will put an unprepared small business out of business. At Cristal Law Group, Attorneys at Law we specialize in providing exactly the assistance you need. We handle Stop-Work Order issues and Penalty Assessment through the entire State of Florida. During this difficult and tedious process, we will:
- Get involved immediately to work with the State Investigator to get the Stop-Work Order lifted so you and your employees can get back to work.
- Help you sort through and then provide the necessary documentation that is being requested by the State of Florida investigator.
- Save you money. It is very common for the State of Florida to assess a much larger penalty than you should owe. Our experienced team of lawyers can make sure that you are not paying any fines or penalties in excess of what you owe and we can oftentimes work with the State to significantly reduce the amount of the original penalty assessed.
Contact a Florida Stop-Work Order defense attorney at the firm who is accessible at any time to answer questions and fight to protect your rights. To find out if a Stop-Work Order has been entered against your company, please visit : http://www.myfloridacfo.com/WCAPPS/SWO/SWOquery.asp.