Juan Navarrete — ADJ9934566

Applicant Juan Navarrete, a forklift operator, claimed cumulative injury (2011-2015) to his back, neck, and skin (melanoma), among other body parts. The WCJ found industrial injury to the back and neck but denied the melanoma claim, deeming the reporting of treating physicians Drs. Brautbar and Zlotolow not substantial medical evidence. Both parties sought reconsideration: applicant on the melanoma causation issue, and defendant on the admission of a 2016 deposition transcript and the finding of spinal injury. The WCAB panel rescinded the F&O and returned the matter to the WCJ to develop the record by appointing a regular physician under Labor Code section 5701, and instructed that applicant's deposition transcript is admissible and must be admitted. The panel held the WCJ erred in treating the deposition as potentially inadmissible based on applicant's purported mental fitness, as that is a medical determination and inadmissibility is not a proper remedy for evidence deemed non-substantial.