Watson, Nerissa

Applicant Nerissa Watson, a Detention Services Officer, sought removal in response to a November 2, 2023 F&O that vacated submission and ordered the orthopedic AME to prepare a supplemental report with a complete Benson apportionment analysis covering each separate date of injury. The WCAB treated the petition as one for reconsideration because the F&O resolved threshold issues of injury and employment, but applied the removal standard because only the interlocutory order vacating submission was challenged. The Board found that repeated orders to develop the record on apportionment—already resulting in six additional AME reports—improperly relieved the defendant of its burden of proof. Citing Benson, Escobedo, and Kopping, the Board held that where the employer fails to meet its burden of proving apportionment, a combined unapportioned award is appropriate and the Appeals Board has no duty to develop the record for a party that recognizes its record's insufficiency but fails to act. The Board granted reconsideration, rescinded the F&O, and returned the matter for a decision on the current record.