RAMON BECERRA, Applicant,
v.
EASTSIDE RESERVOIR PROJECT/ ADVANCO CONSTRUCTORS; HARTFORD ACCIDENT & INDEMNITY COMPANY, Defendants.
No. AHM 51304
California Workers Compensation Decisions
Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board State Of California
July 17, 1997
ORDER
VACATING ORDER GRANTING RECONSIDERATION, ORDER DISMISSING
PETITION FOR RECONSIDERATION, ORDER GRANTING REMOVAL, AND
DECISION AFTER REMOVAL
ROBERT
N. RUGGLES, WORKERS' COMPENSATION APPEALS BOA
On May
2, 1996, Applicant filed an Application for Adjudication
which alleged that he suffered an injury to multiple parts of
his body including his head, spine, and extremities on
January 26, 1996, when a beam fell on his head in the course
of his employment as a laborer. On October 24, 1996,
defendants filed a petition for dismissal of the Application,
asserting that applicant's injury is covered by the
alternative dispute resolution process in Labor Code section
3201.5. When their petition for dismissal was not granted,
defendants filed a Petition for Reconsideration. On March 21,
1997, due to the requirement that the Appeals Board act
within sixty days (Labor Code section 5909), we granted
reconsideration in order to allow sufficient opportunity to
study the issues in this case. We have completed our study
and, as explained below, we will vacate the order granting
reconsideration, grant removal, and dismiss the Application.
Defendants
filed a petition for reconsideration arguing that the
workers' compensation referee (WCR) erred in refusing to
grant their petition for dismissal of the Application.
Pursuant to Labor Code section 5900, "Any person
aggrieved directly or indirectly by any final order,
decision, or award made and filed by the appeals board or a
workers' compensation judge . . . may petition the board
for reconsideration . . ." [Emphasis added.] But a
refusal to dismiss an Application is not a final order or
decision because it does not determine a substantive right or
liability of anyone involved in the case. See Kaiser
Foundation Hospital v. Workers' Compensation Appeals
Board (1978) 82 Cal.App.3d 39, 43 Cal.Comp.Cases 661.
Therefore, we will vacate our order granting reconsideration...
