What the panel ordered
Petition for disqualification dismissed as moot due to WCJ's voluntary recusal; petition for removal granted; order setting matter for trial rescinded; matter returned to presiding judge for further proceedings.
Petition for disqualification and petition for removal from the order setting the matter for trial issued by the WCJ on April 23, 2026, filed by applicant.
What was disputed, and how it came out
Each issue the panel decided, with the reasoning it gave. An outcome is what this panel did on this record — not a rule, and not a prediction.
The WCJ did not follow WCAB Rule 10813 regarding the petition to seal records, justifying removal. The WCJ voluntarily recused, making disqualification moot. Removal was granted to address procedural errors before trial.
From the decision · page 2Removal is an extraordinary remedy rarely exercised by the Appeals Board. (Cortez v. Workers' Comp. Appeals Bd. (2006) 136 Cal.App.4th 596, 599, fn. 5 [71 Cal.Comp.Cases 155]; Kleemann v. Workers' Comp. Appeals Bd. (2005) 127 Cal.App.4th 274, 280, fn. 2 [70 Cal.Comp.Cases 133].) The Appeals Board will grant removal only if the petitioner shows that substantial prejudice or irreparable harm will result if removal is not granted. (Cal. Code Regs., tit. 8, 10955(a); see also Cortez, supra; Kleemann, supra.) Also, the petitioner must demonstrate that reconsideration will not be an adequate remedy if a final decision adverse to the petitioner ultimately issues. (Cal. Code Regs., tit. 8, § 10955(a).) Here, the WCJ ordered that applicant's petition to seal be heard together at trial amongst applicant's petition for 132a. The WCJ did not follow WCAB Rule 10813 (Cal. Code Regs., tit. 8, § 10813). Thus, removal is proper in this case.