Individuals who contract COVID-19 from a family member who contracted the illness at work can sue their family member’s employer for civil damages.
In See’s Candies, Inc. v. Superior Court, the Court of Appeal for the State of California took up the question of whether an individual who contracts COVID-19 from a family member who contracted the illness at work can sue their family member’s employer for civil damages.
The plaintiffs in See’s Candies included a former employee, her daughter and the estate of her deceased husband. Their lawsuit alleges the employee contracted COVID-19 at work, the daughter and husband contracted the disease while the employee was quarantining at home, and the husband eventually died from the disease. They sought civil damages against the company based on alleged failures to maintain COVID-19 preventative measures, which, they claim, resulted in the employee contracting COVID-19 at work.
Putting other arguments aside, the company argued the claims were preempted by the exclusivity provisions of California’s Workers’ Compensation Act (WCA) (Labor Code §3200 et seq.). In particular, the company pointed to the “derivative injury doctrine,” which generally provides the WCA preempts claims premised on a compensable workplace injury as well as claims premised on injuries “collateral to or derivative of” such injuries. The employer argued further, because the employee contracted COVID-19 at work, the subsequent illness and death of family members...
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