In this issue..
Virginia Surety Company v
WCAB, Echelard
Vol. XIV No.
IX
September 2008
COMPENSATION
NEWS
MONTHLY REPORT
Appellate Courts disagree on which
rating schedule you must use to detemine
permanent disability
This is a non
published Appellate
Court decision
further splitting
opinion on the rating
schedule.
T
his is another case in a
sequence of cases
trying to determine
which rating schedule to use.
This question will ultimately have
to be determined by the
California Supreme Court.
In this case the applicant had
an admitted injury. The applicant
did not become permanent and
stationary before January 1,
2005. However, the applicant
was seen by a physician who
wrote a report December 20,
2004. Coupled with a deposition
of the physician in 2007 it was
determined that the applicant had
permanent disability prior to
January 1, 2005.
The Workers' Compensation
Judge ( WCJ) determined at trial
the 1997 Permanent Disability
Rating Schedule (PDRS) should
be used and not the 2005 PDRS.
The employer filed a Petition for
Reconsideration and the
Workers' Compensation Appeals
Board (WCAB) sided with the
WCJ. The employer filed a Writ.
This appellate court noted the
divergence in appellate opinions.
Specifically, they looked at Labor
Code section 4600, subdivision
(d). They looked at Vera v.
WCAB (2007) 154 Cal. App. 4
th
996 that requires the applicant to
be permanent and stationary prior
to January 2005 to use the old
schedule.
This court disagreed with that
decision and followed the
decision in Genlyte v. WCAB
(Zavala) (2008) and Zenith Ins.
V WCAB (2008) 159 Cal. App.
4
th
705, which indicated the
applicant did not need to be
permanent and stationary , you
only need the indication of
permanent disability.

=================
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