New CA Torts Case, 4-1-25
New CA Torts Case
Is an injured school district volunteer limited to workers’ compensation damages?
Last month, the California Court of Appeal addressed this issue. Below is my one-paragraph summary of this new decision:
Kuo v. Dublin Unified School Dist. (2025) _ Cal.App.5th _, 2025 WL 783206: The Court of Appeal affirmed the trial court’s order granting defendant’s motion for summary judgment in plaintiffs’ action alleging the wrongful death of decedent Catherine Kuo after she was crushed between two vehicles while volunteering for a middle school program called the “Farmers to Families Food Box Program.” The trial court properly granted the motion for summary judgment. The Court of Appeal concluded that fatal injuries unambiguously fell into the category of “any injury” according to the plain meaning of Labor Code section 3364.5. Moreover, decedent was deemed an employee entitled to workers’ compensation benefits because defendant adopted a resolution stating, “in accordance with S...
New CA Employment Case
Last month, the California Supreme Court published a new decision addressing this issue. To find out what they decided, watch the video and read my one-paragraph case summary below.
New CA Employment Case Â
Kuciemba v. Victory Woodworks, Inc. (2023) _ Cal.5th _ , 2023 WL 4360826: Answering two questions of California law certified from the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit concerning the scope of an employer’s liability when an employee’s spouse is injured by transmission of the virus that causes the disease known as COVID-19, the California Supreme Court ruled that if an employee contracts COVID-19 at the workplace and brings the virus home to a spouse, the California Workers’ Compensation Act (WCA; Lab. Code, § 3200 et seq.) does not bar the spouse’s negligence claim against the employer. However, it also ruled that an employer does not owe a duty of care under California law to prevent the spre
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