Household Contact COVID Case Status in California Supreme Court

The defense brief has now been submitted to California Supreme Court for review on the question of whether the workers’ compensation act does bars a claim against an employer by a household contact of an employee who contacted COVID at work. The court granted the request, made under California Rules of Court, Rule 8.548, that the court will decide questions of California law presented in a matter pending in the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. 

KUCIEMBA v. VICTORY WOODWORKS Division SF Case Number S274191

The concept of litigation by household contact is longstanding. A negligence action can be brought by the household contact directly against the employer. The case is similar to the claims right by family members of asbestos workers who brought fiber home on their clothes, contaminated the household environment, and subjected the household members to diseases such as asbestosis, lung cancer, and mesothelioma.

The brief was filed on August 22, 2022. The case now awaits a calendar assignment by the Court if an oral argument is scheduled. The case, while focused on California law, will have a significant impact on similar fact situations in other jurisdictions. See California Supreme Court Agrees to Review COVID Take Home Liability Case 6/23/22.

By Jon L. Gelman

Courtesy of Workers' Compensation

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