What the panel ordered
The WCAB rescinded the WCJ's February 19, 2021 Findings and Award and substituted a new finding that applicant's permanent disability after apportionment under Labor Code section 4664 is 15%. All issues in ADJ11349617 were deferred.
Defendant sought reconsideration of the WCJ's Findings and Award issued on February 19, 2021, which the WCAB panel reviewed and issued a Decision After Reconsideration on December 4, 2025.
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 WCAB found that the proper method for calculating apportionment under section 4664 is to subtract the prior disability percentage from the current disability percentage, following the California Supreme Court's holding in Brodie, rather than subtracting the dollar value of the prior disability.
The facts that decided it
What the panel treated as outcome-determinative, and which side it favoured.
Applicant sustained a 24% permanent disability to the low back due to combined effects of prior and current injuries.
Favours Applicant prevailed