Miranda

Petitioners Miranda, Zorrero and Freeman sought writs of mandate seeking to vacate the decision of the Department of Human Resources Development (as to Miranda) and of the California Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board (as to Zorrero and Freeman), denying to petitioners unemployment insurance benefits. The trial court granted the writs, and the department and the board have appealed.

A brief preliminary discussion of the factual and procedural foundation underlying these disputes is necessary. The department is the statewide agency responsible for the administration of the unemployment insurance program contained in the California Unemployment Insurance Code (Unemp. Ins. Code). The program provides for the payment of economic sustenance to persons unemployed through no fault of their own. (Unemp. Ins. Code, § 100.) The board is the agency within the department handling appeals concerning the eligibility of applicants for benefits. California’s program is certified for federal funding by the Secretary of Labor pursuant to the federal Social Security Act ( 42 U.S.C. §§ 501-503 ); it is also funded by California employers. The program’s purpose is to protect persons from…