Skip to content
MyClaimWorth
NJ
★ New Jersey · workplace

Workplace settlements
in New Jersey.

By Reviewed by Abd Shanti, Founder9 min read

New Jersey workers’ compensation pays 70% of wages up to $1,199 a week in 2026, and in most cases it is the only claim a worker has against the employer. The exception is an intentional wrong, and the leading example is a safety guard that was tied up for thirteen years.

Facts that decide a workplace claim in New Jersey

Temporary disability, 202670% of wages, maximum $1,199 and minimum $320 a week, for up to 400 weeks.NJ Division of Workers’ Compensation, 2026 schedule
Permanent total and death, 202670% of wages, maximum $1,199 a week, for 450 weeks, with further benefits in set cases.NJ Division of Workers’ Compensation, 2026 schedule
Suing the employerBarred for negligence, gross negligence or recklessness; allowed only for an intentional wrong, where the employer knew injury was substantially certain.Laidlow v. Hariton Machinery (N.J. 2002)
Safety rule violations aloneDirecting a worker to ride a forklift in breach of federal safety rules was held not enough to escape the compensation bar.Hocutt v. Minda Supply (App. Div. 2020)
Deadline to sueTwo years: an injury action must “be commenced within two years next after the cause of any such action shall have accrued.”N.J.S.A. 2A:14-2, as quoted in Chipola v. Flannery (App. Div. 2025)
united states · sister site
Your workplace claim in New Jersey. See the number for your own case.

FairSettlement gives you a free estimate for your own workplace case in about two minutes, no cost and no obligation.

Check my case
★ NJ · reported workplace outcomes

What New Jersey courts have awarded.

Real New Jersey decisions and verdicts, each linked to the court record or official report.

  • Laidlow v. Hariton Machinery
    New Jersey Supreme Court · 2002
    Summary judgment reversed; trial ordered

    A rolling mill operator’s gloved hand was pulled into unguarded rollers. The safety guard had been tied up from 1979 until the 1992 accident and lowered only when OSHA inspectors visited, and he had asked his supervisor to restore it weeks before. The Court held removing a safety device can be an intentional wrong and sent the case to trial.

  • Hocutt v. Minda Supply
    New Jersey Appellate Division · 2020
    Summary judgment for employer affirmed

    A warehouse worker hurt riding as a passenger on a forklift sued the company, arguing it broke federal safety rules and that he was employed through a leasing agency. The court held the company counted as his employer and the claim was barred by workers’ compensation.

★ NJ · workplace · in practice

What changes the number here.

What actually moves a workplace settlement in New Jersey.

  1. 1

    The intentional wrong exception is narrow but real. Laidlow turned on concrete facts: a guard deliberately disabled for years, hidden from inspectors, and warnings the supervisor ignored. A plain safety violation, as in Hocutt, is not enough.

  2. 2

    Check for companies other than your employer. A third party such as an equipment maker or another contractor can be sued in the ordinary way, without the compensation bar.

  3. 3

    The 2026 rates are set by statewide wages. At 70% of wages up to $1,199, a higher earner’s benefit is capped, which makes any third party claim more important.

★ NJ · statute of limitations
2 years from date of injury

N.J.S.A. § 2A:14-2

★ NJ · fault rule
Modified comparative, 51% bar

Modified comparative, recovery barred at 51% claimant fault.

★ NJ · caps

What caps recovery.

Statutory caps that may bear on a workplace settlement in New Jersey.

★ workplace · same region & fault regime

Compare to like jurisdictions.

How New Jersey's fault rule and limitation period compare to jurisdictions in the same US region and to those running the same fault rule for workplace claims.

JurisdictionFault ruleLimitationWorkplace page
New Jersey · you are hereModified comparative, 51% bar2 years from date of injury—
New YorkPure comparative negligence3 years for personal injury; 2 years 6 months for medical malpracticeNY · workplace →
PennsylvaniaModified comparative, 51% bar2 years from date of injuryPA · workplace →
Rhode IslandPure comparative negligence3 years from date of injuryRI · workplace →
VermontModified comparative, 51% bar3 years from date of injuryVT · workplace →
ConnecticutModified comparative, 51% bar2 years from date of injuryCT · workplace →
DelawareModified comparative, 51% bar2 years from date of injuryDE · workplace →
OhioModified comparative, 51% bar2 years from date of injuryOH · workplace →
OklahomaModified comparative, 51% bar2 years from date of injuryOK · workplace →
OregonModified comparative, 51% bar2 years from date of injuryOR · workplace →
South CarolinaModified comparative, 51% bar3 years from date of injurySC · workplace →
New MexicoPure comparative negligence3 years from date of injuryNM · workplace →
North CarolinaPure contributory negligence3 years from date of injuryNC · workplace →
★ NJ · workplace · frequently asked

Common questions.

Each answer is independently coherent and references the relevant statute or authority document.

united states · sister site
Hurt at work in New Jersey? See what your own claim could be worth.

FairSettlement, our US sister site, gives you a free estimate in about two minutes. No cost and no obligation.

Check my case

Sources

Checked 2026-09-28.

★ all of NJ
New Jersey overview

Fault rule, statute, caps, and key facts for New Jersey as a whole.

★ national frame
Workplace in United States

Workplace band structure and severity tiers at the US level.

★ all 15 countries
Workplace · everywhere

Cross-jurisdiction comparison of workplace bands.

★ editorial note

Figures on this page are not quotes for any specific case. For representation, consult an attorney admitted in New Jersey. See /methodology, /sources, and /disclaimer.