National Automobile Insurance v. Industrial Accident Commission

This is a petition to review an award of the Industrial Accident Commission.

The employee, Lome E. Lackey, was a taxi driver employed in San Bernardino. On September 18, 1936, he sustained a compensable injury and filed a claim with the respondent commission. After hearing, the commission found that his employers were Frank Parias and Leslie Mohr, and that petitioner, National Automobile Insurance Company, was the insurance carrier. On rehearing, the commission found that the employers were “Frank Parlas, Leslie Mohr, The Airline Taxi Company, Merrill Parlas, Howard Crawthers, Donald Morris and George Riche”. The employers were released and discharged from liability and an award was made against petitioner as their insurance carrier.

The principal issue is whether petitioner is the insurance carrier of the employer or employers of Lackey. Frank Parlas originally commenced the taxi business under the fictitious name of Air Line Taxi, and later he and his associates also used the name of Red Top Cab Company. Other parties were eventually brought into the organization. Their association was not under any formal articles of partnership, nor was there ever a fixed group of partners…