Workers' Comp Settlements in South Dakota

If the employer and employee agree on compensation, a memorandum of the agreement is filed with the Department of Labor and Regulation; it stands as approved and enforceable unless the department sends notice of disapproval within 20 days. Either side may also petition the department to have unpaid compensation paid in a lump sum; after notice and a showing, the Secretary of Labor and Regulation may order it if it is in the employee's best interests. For permanent total disability, a full or partial lump sum may be ordered only for the employee's exceptional financial need caused by the injury or to pay approved attorney fees and costs. Death benefits to dependents generally cannot be paid in a lump sum.

The South Dakota sections on temporary total and partial disability set the weekly rate but do not state a maximum number of weeks. A worker in a reasonably necessary rehabilitation program receives compensation at the temporary total rate for the whole time the worker is in the program. Permanent partial disability for scheduled injuries is paid for a set number of weeks for each body part (for example, 50 weeks for loss of a thumb). Permanent total disability is paid for life, with an annual cost-of-living increase of up to 3 percent.

In South Dakota, attorney fees in workers' compensation cases must be approved by the Department of Labor and Regulation and are capped as a percentage of the benefits secured through the attorney's involvement: 25% of the disputed amount on settlement, 30% if the department awards benefits after a hearing or on circuit court appeal, and 35% after a successful Supreme Court appeal. The Division of Labor and Management can give information and answer questions on a limited basis but cannot represent any party.