What the panel ordered
Petition for Reconsideration denied.
Petition for Reconsideration filed by defendants and denied by the WCAB panel on review of the WCJ's findings and order dated September 21, 2021.
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.
The panel QME, Dr. Noriega, opined that the injury was industrially caused by carbon dioxide exposure, ruling out other causes. The WCJ found substantial evidence of industrial causation and applied the neutral risk and mysterious death doctrines, concluding the injury arose out of employment.
The facts that decided it
What the panel treated as outcome-determinative, and which side it favoured.
Dr. Noriega's opinion that carbon dioxide exposure from dry ice sublimation in a closed car caused the injury.
Favours Applicant prevailed
This opinion provided substantial evidence of industrial causation, which the WCJ relied upon to find the injury arose out of employment.