SAMUEL TAPIA, JR. vs. GOLDEN STATE HEALTH CENTERS, INC., dba SYLMAR HEALTH AND REHABILITATION CENTERS, Permissibly Self-Insured; METRO RISK MANAGEMENT

This case concerns a workers' compensation claim where the applicant sustained an injury during a workplace "dog pile." The initial decision denied the claim, finding it barred by the horseplay defense. On reconsideration, the Appeals Board found the applicant to be a non-participant, despite evidence of prior similar incidents and alleged invitations, and therefore not barred from recovery. The Board rescinded the original denial and found the injury to be industrial, though one Commissioner dissented, deferring to the WCJ's credibility findings that the applicant was a participant.