“A fighting force both consistent and compassionate on a scale’s a 5 all around.”
Rachael Hall
✦ Board-Certified Specialist in Workers’ Compensation Law — State Bar of California ✦
Bad ruling? We take your case to the next level — Reconsideration, Writ of Review, and beyond.
By Eman Yazdchi, Esq. · Certified Specialist in Workers' Compensation Law
A bad ruling from a workers' comp judge doesn't mean your case is over. If you received an unfavorable decision at the Van Nuys WCAB — whether it involved your Palmdale construction injury, a Plant 42 repetitive-stress claim, or an Amazon warehouse back injury — California law gives you the right to appeal through a Petition for Reconsideration. But the window is narrow: you have just 20 days from the date of the judge's decision to file.
Workers' comp appeals require a fundamentally different skill set than trial work. You're no longer arguing facts to a single judge — you're identifying specific legal errors in a written decision and persuading a panel of WCAB commissioners that the outcome should be reversed. This is technical, appellate-level work that demands the deep procedural knowledge of a certified specialist.
From our office on Avenue M-14, we've filed Petitions for Reconsideration for Palmdale workers across every type of dispute — disability rating challenges, apportionment rulings, denied claim decisions, and treatment authorization disputes. We've also pursued Writs of Review at the California Court of Appeal when the WCAB panel itself ruled incorrectly. If your case was decided wrongly, we have the expertise and the urgency to fight it.
Under LC §5903, a Petition for Reconsideration must identify specific grounds — you cannot simply argue that you disagree with the outcome. The WCAB Appeals Board will grant reconsideration only if it finds one or more of the following:
Time moves fast in workers' comp appeals:
If the WCAB panel denies your Petition for Reconsideration, the fight can continue. A Writ of Review under LC §5950 takes your case to the California Court of Appeal — a higher court with the power to overturn WCAB decisions. Writs of Review are granted sparingly, but they are essential in cases involving novel legal questions, constitutional issues, or significant policy implications. We've pursued them for Palmdale workers when the stakes justified the additional level of appellate scrutiny.
Filing a Petition for Reconsideration does not automatically stay the judge's order. If the decision awards you benefits, the insurer generally must comply while the appeal is pending. If the decision denies benefits, filing the petition preserves your right to challenge the denial but doesn't restore benefits automatically. We can petition for a stay of adverse orders in appropriate cases.
Injured at work in Palmdale? Call (661) 273-1780
Tap to call →All Palmdale workers' comp trials and initial decisions are issued at the Van Nuys WCAB. Petitions for Reconsideration are filed here and reviewed by the WCAB Appeals Board panel in San Francisco.
Appeals are won on legal argument, not emotional testimony. A board-certified specialist identifies the precise legal error in the judge's decision and frames the petition to maximize the likelihood of reversal. General practitioners often miss appealable issues that a specialist catches immediately.
Ready to discuss your case? Schedule a free consultation.
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