ADJ10805554 — California WCAB decision

What the panel ordered

Petition for reconsideration denied by the Appeals Board panel on September 12, 2025.

Petition for reconsideration filed by defendant challenging the WCJ's Findings, Award, and Order issued June 26, 2025, and the setting aside of the August 16, 2024 Award approving stipulations.

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What was disputed, and how it came out

Each issue the panel decided, with the reasoning it gave. An outcome is what this panel did on this record — not a rule, and not a prediction.

Reconsideration / removalDefendant prevailed

The petition was denied because the Appeals Board acted timely on the petition and found no significant prejudice or irreparable harm to justify removal. The NIT issue remains with the WCJ.

From the decision · page 1We have considered the allegations of the Petition for Reconsideration and the contents of the report of the WCJ with respect thereto. Based on our review of the record, we will deny the Petition as one seeking reconsideration.

The facts that decided it

What the panel treated as outcome-determinative, and which side it favoured.

The case was transmitted to the Appeals Board on July 18, 2025, and the Board acted on the petition by September 16, 2025, within the 60-day period required by Labor Code section 5909.

The rules the panel named

Authorities as the decision cited them, with how this panel applied each one.

Labor Code section 5909

A petition for reconsideration must be acted upon within 60 days of transmission to the Appeals Board.

The Appeals Board acted on the petition within the 60-day period, making the petition timely.

From the decision · page 2I. Preliminarily, we note that former Labor Code1 section 5909 provided that a petition for reconsideration was deemed denied unless the Appeals Board acted on the petition within 60 days from the date of filing. (Lab. Code, § 5909.) Effective July 2, 2024, section 5909 was amended to state in relevant part that:

Labor Code sections 5900, 5902, 5903

A petition for reconsideration may only be taken from a final order, decision, or award.

The WCJ's decision included final findings subject to reconsideration, but the challenged order to set aside the August 16, 2024 Award was interlocutory and reviewed under the removal standard.

From the decision · page 3II. A petition for reconsideration may properly be taken only from a "final" order, decision, or award. (Lab. Code, § 5900(a), 5902, 5903.) A "final" order has been defined as one that either "determines any substantive right or liability of those involved in the case" (Rymer v. Hagler (1989) 211 Cal.App.3d 1171, 1180; Safeway Stores, Inc. v. Workers' Comp. Appeals Bd. (Pointer) (1980) 104 Cal.App.3d 528, 534-535 [45 Cal.Comp.Cases 410]; Kaiser Foundation Hospitals v. Workers' Comp. Appeals Bd. (Kramer) (1978) 82 Cal.App.3d 39, 45 [43 Cal.Comp.Cases 661]) or determines a "threshold" issue that is fundamental to the claim for benefits. (Maranian v. Workers' Comp. Appeals Bd. (2000) 81 Cal.App.4th 1068, 1070, 1075 [65 Cal.Comp.Cases 650].) If a decision includes resolution of a "threshold" issue, then it is a "final" decision, whether or not all issues are resolved or there is an ultimate decision on the right to benefits. (Aldi v. Carr, McClellan, Ingersoll, Thompson & Horn (2006) 71 Cal.Comp.Cases 783, 784, fn. 2 (Appeals Board en banc).) Threshold issues include, but are not limited to, the following: injury arising out of and in the course of employment, jurisdiction, the existence of an employment relationship and statute of limitations issues. (See Capital Builders Hardware, Inc. v. Workers' Comp.

ADJ10805554 · September 12, 2025

What the panel ordered

What was disputed, and how it came out

The facts that decided it

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The rules the panel named

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