Injured Worker's Unguarded Press Tort Fails; Employer Not Entitled to Recover Costs

A California appeals court ruled that a trial court properly granted summary judgment after finding that an injured worker's negligence claim didn't fit into the narrow exception to exclusivity when an employer removes a guard from machinery. At the same time, the appeals court held that Research Metal Industries Inc. was not entitled to recover nearly $30,000 in costs because Pedro Susano Herrera Marquez had a basis to reasonably believe his employer had either removed or failed to install the manufacturer's original guard. Herrera was seriously injured in December 2019 whe...