Workers’ Compensation · Primary-source case analysis

Carroll Wesley: When an Out-of-State Team Was Exempt From California Compensation Law

By Aneeta Mishra and Timothy Chan

Published April 23, 2026

Carroll Wesley applies California’s statutory exemption for certain employees hired elsewhere who enter California only temporarily while covered under a reciprocal workers’ compensation system.

A professional football player claimed cumulative injury

Wesley Carroll was hired outside California by the Cincinnati Bengals and played one game in California during the claimed period. The dispute concerned whether that brief California work brought the Bengals portion of the claim within California law.

Section 3600.5(b) has four elements

The exemption requires an employee hired outside California who is only temporarily working here, qualifying coverage under another state’s compensation law, recognition of California’s extraterritorial provisions by that state, and a reciprocal exemption for California employers and employees.

The Bengals proved the statutory prerequisites

Evidence showed Ohio self-insurance covering the employment, temporary California presence, and reciprocal Ohio law. The Board rejected the view that a single California game necessarily defeated the exemption.

Disposition

The WCAB held the Bengals and Carroll exempt from California workers’ compensation law for that employment and rescinded the contrary award as to the team. Other employers and other periods required their own analysis.

Key takeaways

• Establish the place of hire and nature of California work.
• Prove the out-of-state coverage in force on the relevant date.
• Analyze reciprocity under both states’ statutes.
• Apply the exemption employer by employer and period by period.