Workers’ Compensation · Primary-source case analysis
Pasquotto: A Prior Compromise Alone Does Not Establish a Disability Award
Decision: Pasquotto v. Hayward Lumber, No. GRO 0028123 (WCAB Feb. 27, 2006) (en banc).
A prior settlement payment is not automatically a disability percentage to subtract from a later claim. Pasquotto separated two questions: Did the earlier agreement establish an award of permanent disability, and did the earlier injury actually contribute to the current disability? The first answer could be no while the second still required medical proof.
The earlier case ended by compromise and release
Eric Pasquotto settled a 1998 back injury by a $35,000 Compromise and Release. The agreement also resolved future medical and other disputed rights. It did not state a permanent-disability percentage or define the factors of disability being awarded. He later returned to heavy work for another employer and sustained back injuries in 2001 and 2002. Pasquotto, pages 2–7.
The trial judge treated the earlier settlement as a prior disability award and used matching restrictions to reach a net zero-percent rating for the later injuries. The Board held that this was not a proper use of section 4664(b). The settlement’s existence and amount did not supply the missing disability determination. Pasquotto, pages 7, 10–14.
Settlement approval was not a prior disability award
An approved Compromise and Release is an award in the general sense, but that does not necessarily make it an award of permanent disability for section 4664(b). The conclusive presumption requires the latter. Here, the agreement left permanent disability disputed and resolved several kinds of liability; the Board could not infer a percentage from the lump sum or reconstruct an unexpressed allocation through evidence about settlement negotiations. Pasquotto, pages 10–14.
The majority’s qualification matters: An approval order without more was insufficient. It expressly reserved whether an approval order might qualify in other circumstances. Commissioner Brass would have adopted the broader rule that no Compromise and Release could ever be such an award, even with a disability stipulation. That was his separate view, not the majority’s holding. Pasquotto, page 14, note 8; pages 22–28.
Earlier medical evidence could show a cause of current disability
The earlier medical reports could still matter under section 4663. That inquiry asks whether the prior industrial injury caused part of the current permanent disability—not how many dollars the worker previously accepted to close a disputed case. It also does not limit other factors to nonindustrial conditions; prior industrial injuries are expressly included. Pasquotto, pages 14–15.
The worker could present evidence of medical rehabilitation—recovery from the earlier disabling effects—under section 4663. But a symptom-free return to work did not necessarily establish that the old injury made no causal contribution after the later injuries. The evaluator needed to explain the relationship to present disability. This is different from trying to disprove the legally presumed persistence of disability covered by a qualifying prior award under section 4664(b). Pasquotto, pages 16–19.
Disposition
The Board rescinded the trial decision and returned the matter for new permanent-disability and section 4663 findings, without applying section 4664(b) on this settlement. The existing reports did not address the new causation standards adequately. It also left credibility and any claimed medical rehabilitation for the judge to assess. The Board did not select a final percentage, approve an automatic 50-percent deduction or decide that the later injuries caused no compensable disability. Pasquotto, pages 15, 19–21.
For a later claim involving an old compromise, obtain both sets of documents: The signed agreement and approval order to identify what was actually resolved, and the medical evidence to assess causation. A settlement amount cannot do the work of a medical explanation, and the absence of a qualifying prior award does not make the earlier medical history disappear.
Key takeaways
- Determine whether the prior disposition actually awarded disability.
- Do not equate settlement value with a disability percentage.
- Obtain the earlier medical record.
- Require substantial evidence connecting prior factors to current disability.
Evaluate prior settlement apportionment claims
Our office can analyze how prior compromise agreements affect current permanent disability claims under California law. Bring your prior Compromise and Release orders, previous medical evaluation reports, and current disability ratings. Call (949) 343-9735 or email office@mishrax.com.