Green, Alfonso

Applicant Alfonso Green, a truck driver, claimed a March 27, 2015 industrial injury while working for Golden Drop, Inc., which denied employment, characterizing him as an independent contractor under a sub-lease agreement. After receiving over $112,000 in benefits under an occupational accident policy from Transguard (also Golden Drop's workers' compensation carrier), applicant voluntarily dismissed his WC claim and later sought to reopen it. The WCJ found the claim barred by the statute of limitations (Lab. Code § 5405), found defendant not estopped, and found no good cause to set aside the dismissal, denying the petition to reopen. On October 9, 2023, the Appeals Board (after Shipley tolling due to an EAMS processing error) rescinded the WCJ's findings, holding that denial of trial on the threshold employment issue violated applicant's due process rights and that adjudication of employment was a necessary prerequisite to the statute of limitations and estoppel defenses, returning the matter to the trial level. In the present January 2, 2024 decision, the Board dismissed defendant's petition for reconsideration of that interim order (treating it as non-final), treated it as a petition for removal, and denied removal because defendant showed no substantial prejudice or irreparable harm.