California Code of Regulations
Title 8 - Industrial Relations
Division 1 - Department of Industrial Relations
Chapter 4.5 - Division of Workers' Compensation
Subchapter 2 - Workers' Compensation Appeals Board-Rules and Practice Procedure
Article 1 - General
Section 10305 - Definitions

(a) "Administrative Director" means the Administrative Director of the Division of Workers' Compensation or a designee.

(b) "Appeals Board" means the commissioners and deputy commissioners of the Workers' Compensation Appeals Board acting en banc, in panels or individually.

(c) "Appearance" means a party or their representative's presence, pursuant to Labor Code section 5700, at any hearing.

(d) "Applicant" or "injured employee" or "injured worker" or "dependent" means any person asserting a right to relief under the provisions of Labor Code section 5300.

(e) "Claims administrator" means an entity that reviews or adjusts workers' compensation claims on behalf of either (1) an insurer or (2) an employer that has secured a certificate of consent to self-insure from the Department of Industrial Relations, whether employed directly or as a third party.

(f) "Defendant" means any person against whom a right to relief is claimed.

(g) "Director" means the Director of Industrial Relations or a designee.

(h) "District office" means a location of a trial court of the Workers' Compensation Appeals Board and includes a permanently staffed satellite office.

(i) "Electronic" means by any available technological means.

(j) "Electronic Adjudication Management System" or "EAMS" means the computerized case management system used by the Division of Workers' Compensation to electronically store and maintain adjudication files and to perform other case management functions.

(k) "En Banc decision" means a decision of the Appeals Board as a whole, issued in order to achieve uniformity of decision or in a case presenting novel issues, that is binding on panels of the Appeals Board and workers' compensation judges as legal precedent under the principle of stare decisis.

(l) "Entity" means a corporation, limited liability company, limited partnership, general partnership, limited liability partnership, sole proprietorship or any other organizational structure.

(m) "Filing" a document means receipt and acceptance by the Workers' Compensation Appeals Board of the document for the purpose of having it included in the adjudication file.

(n) "Hearing" means any trial, mandatory settlement conference, status conference, lien conference, lien trial or priority conference conducted by the Workers' Compensation Appeals Board.

(o) "Lien claimant" means any person or entity claiming payment under the provisions of Labor Code section 4903 et seq., including a claim of costs filed as a lien.

(p) "Non-attorney representative" means a person who is not licensed to practice law by the State of California who acts on behalf of a party in proceedings before the Workers' Compensation Appeals Board as allowed by Labor Code sections 5700 and 4907.

(q) "Party" means any person or entity joined in a case, including but not limited to:

(r) "Presiding workers' compensation judge" means the presiding workers' compensation judge of any district office and includes workers' compensation judges designated to perform the functions of a presiding workers' compensation judge.

(s) "Section 4903(b) lien" means a lien claim filed in accordance with Labor Code section 4903(b) for medical treatment expenses incurred by or on behalf of the injured employee, as provided by Article 2 (commencing with Labor Code section 4600), including but not limited to expenses for interpreter services, copying and related services and transportation services incurred in connection with medical treatment. It shall not include any amount payable directly to the injured employee.

(t) "Service" of a document means to deliver a copy of the document in a manner permitted by these rules to a party or other person.

(u) "Significant panel decision" means a decision of the Appeals Board that has been designated by all members of the Appeals Board as of significant interest and importance to the workers' compensation community. Although not binding precedent, significant panel decisions are intended to augment the body of binding appellate and en banc decisions by providing further guidance to the workers' compensation community.

(v) "Status conference" means a proceeding set for the purpose of ascertaining if there are genuine disputes requiring resolution, of providing assistance to the parties in resolving disputes, of narrowing the issues, and of facilitating preparation for trial if a trial is necessary.

(w) "Submission" means the closing of the record to the receipt of further evidence or argument.

(x) "Testimony" means oral evidence given under oath pursuant to Labor Code sections 5704 and 5708.

(y) "Walk-through document" means a document that is presented to a workers' compensation judge for immediate action where no notice of hearing has issued.

(z) "Workers' Compensation Appeals Board" means the commissioners and deputy commissioners of the Appeals Board, presiding workers' compensation judges and workers' compensation judges.

(aa) "Workers' compensation judge" means "workers' compensation administrative law judge" (formerly, "referee") and includes pro tempore judges appointed pursuant to section 10350.