Manwiller, Erin

Applicant Erin Manwiller, a Pennsylvania resident claiming a psychiatric injury from her employment as a warehouse worker in Hayward, California, sought reconsideration of a WCJ order requiring her to appear in person for a deposition in California in conjunction with a scheduled psyche QME evaluation with Dr. Mohan Nair. She argued that under Code of Civil Procedure sections 1989 and 2025.250, she could not be compelled to appear in person because she is a non-resident and the location exceeded geographic limits, and that the deposition could be conducted via Zoom. The Appeals Board treated the petition under the removal standard because the deposition issue is interlocutory, and rejected applicant's arguments, distinguishing Toyota Motor Corp. v. Superior Court (Stewart) because applicant is an actual party who invoked California WCAB jurisdiction by filing her claim there. The Board found that since applicant would already be in California for the QME, and given the importance of credibility and in-person testimony in psyche claims, requiring an in-person deposition was reasonable. The Board granted the petition only to rescind and clarify the F&O (separating threshold stipulated findings from the interlocutory order) but made no substantive change.