What the panel ordered
Petition for Reconsideration granted; May 22, 2024 Findings and Order rescinded and substituted; lien claimant found to qualify as a primary treating physician and met burden under Labor Code sections 4620 and 4621; issue of reasonable value of lien deferred; matter returned to WCJ for further proceedings.
Lien claimant Omid Haghighinia, D.C., sought reconsideration of the May 22, 2024 Findings and Order that found he was not a primary treating physician and not entitled to lien recovery; the WCJ recommended denial of reconsideration; the Appeals Board granted reconsideration, rescinded the May 22, 2024 F&O, and returned the matter to the WCJ for further proceedings consistent with the new decision.
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 Appeals Board found that the lien claimant met the burden to show designation as PTP, that the medical-legal report was reasonable and necessary, and that the lien claimant met its burden under Labor Code sections 4620 and 4621. The Board rejected the prior finding that the lien claimant was not a PTP and that the report was not recoverable, emphasizing the duty to develop the record further if evidence is insufficient.
From the decision · page 1Lien claimant Omid Haghighinia, D.C., seeks reconsideration of the May 22, 2024 Findings and Order (F&O), wherein the workers' compensation administrative law judge (WCJ) found that Dr. Haghighinia was not a primary treating physician (PTP), and that lien claimant was not entitled to recovery of its lien.