WCAB Asks 3rd DCA to Publish Decision on Fees for Missed Hearings

The Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board is asking California’s 3rd Appellate District Court to publish a decision that affirmed a fee award for a missed telephonic hearing. The 3rd DCA earlier in January issued an unpublished decision in which it concluded that neither the Department of Industrial Relations nor the WCAB was required to notify a hearing representative or his client that a hearing was being held virtually during the pandemic. The appellate court additionally said withdrawing a lien didn’t excuse the failure to appear. “We find there was adequate notice ...