Housing Authority of City of Los Angeles v. Workers'comp. Appeals Bd.

Petitioner Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles (L.A. Housing Authority) challenges two findings made by the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board (Appeals Board) in favor of Roger Chandler, the L.A. Housing Authority’s Chief of Police: that the Appeals Board had jurisdiction to determine whether Chandler was an employee within the meaning of Labor Code section 4850 as part of Chandler’s application for workers’ compensation benefits, and that the L.A. Housing Authority was collaterally estopped from denying that Chandler was entitled to the benefits of Labor Code section 4850 because that issue had been resolved against the L.A. Housing Authority in a previous workers’ compensation case. The L.A. Housing Authority further asserts that the earlier case had been decided incorrectly and that Chandler is not entitled to benefits under section 4850. We find that the Appeals Board properly concluded that it had authority to determine the jurisdiction issue, and that the doctrine of collateral estoppel barred the L.A. Housing Authority from denying section 4850 benefits in this case. Accordingly, we affirm.

Background

In a “Findings and Award” issued on February 5,…