Wolfman

The Board of Trustees of the State Teachers’ Retirement System appeals a judgment granting a petition for writ of mandate directing issuance of disability allowances to Joan E. Wolfman.

The underlying facts are not in dispute and we adopt those of the trial court in its statement of decision: “[Wolfman] is a 36-year old elementary school teacher who taught for 12 V2 years before applying for a disability allowance with respondent. [Wolfman] suffers from severe asthma and chronic bronchitis. She has been steroid-dependent since 1963 and will have to use steroids permanently. Steroids are potent and dangerous drugs, with extremely adverse side effects from prolonged use. In [Wolfman’s] last year of teaching school (1978-79), she found it necessary to substantially increase her steroid intake in order to function and, even with that, she became increasingly ill.

“[Wolfman] has received competent medical advice that it would be very dangerous for her to return to teaching and that she should never do it because of the risk of worsening her condition due to her exposure to the rampant infectious agents which small children harbor.”

Discussion

Initially, we note the trial…