Summary Judgment For Employer Reversed On Worker’s Compensation Defense.

Plaintiff functioned as a volunteer employee for defendant.  Defendant’s worker’s compensation insurance policy provided coverage for volunteers. On the day of the incident, according to plaintiff, plaintiff was not acting as a volunteer, but went to defendant’s business to visit a friend. Plaintiff claimed that while she was there, she was asked to go get somebody at the other end of the field, which she started to do, but was thrown off a forklift and severely injured. In ruling on defendant’s motion for summary judgment, the trial court applied the doctrines of judicial estoppel, judicial admissions and evidentiary admissions, finding there was undisputed evidence plaintiff had successfully obtained workers’ compensation benefits by asserting she was a volunteer/employee, and estopped plaintiff from claiming that she was not subject to the exclusive remedy provisions of workers’ compensation. The appellate court reversed the grant of defendant’s motion for summary judgment, noting defendant presented no evidence plaintiff ever presented a claim for workers’ compensation. Minish v. Hanuman Fellowship (Cal. App. Sixth Dist.;  March 12, 2013) 214 Cal.App.4th 437.