Aldi v. Repulic Indemnity Company of America
71 Cal. Comp. Cases ___

In this case the Workers' Compensation Appeals Board held that the new permanent disability rating schedule effective on January 1, 2005 applies to all injuries occurring on or after that date. In those cases of injuries before January 1, 2005 the new permanent disability rating schedule also applies unless one of the exceptions in the third sentence of Labor Code section 4660(d) applies.

Nabors vs. Piedmont Lumber & Mill Co.,
70 Cal. Comp. Cases 856

The Board held that when the an injured worker is awarded permanent disability after apportionment, the amount of permanent disability indemnity due to the applicant is calculated by determining the overall percentage of permanent disability and then subtracting the percentage of permanent disability caused by other factors or previously awarded. The leftover amount is the injured worker's final percentage of permanent disability calculated using Labor Code sections 4453 and 4658.

Escobedo vs. Marshalls
70 Cal. Comp. Cases 604

The Workers' Compensation Appeals Board held that apportionment of permanent disability based on "causation" refers to the causation of the permanent disability, not causation of the injury. Under Labor Code section 4663(c) a reporting physician must describe the percentage of permanent disability was directly caused by the work injury and what percentage was caused by other factors. However, the physician must also provide their reasoning for finding these percentages so that a Workers' Compensation Administrative Law Judge may evaluate the legal basis for the opinions.

Brice Sandhagen vs. Cox & Cox Construction, Inc.
69 Cal. Comp. Cases 1452

In this case the Board held that the utilization review time deadlines of section 4610(g)(1) are mandatory and that if a defendant fails to meet these deadlines, they may not use the utilization review procedure for the particular medical treatment dispute in question. Moreover, once a defendant provides an untimely utilization review procedure, that report is not admissible in evidence and cannot be sent to an evaluating physician.