Adir International DBA LA Curacao; Travelers Insurance Arturo Retana WORKERS’ COMPENSATION APPEALS BOARDSTATE OF CALIFORNIAARTURO RETANA, Applicant,vs.ADIR INTERNATIONAL DBA LA CURACAO; TRAVELERS INSURANCE, Defendants.Case No. ADJ1497490 (LAO 0877080)OPINION AND ORDER GRANTING PETITION FOR REMOVAL AND DECISION AFTER REMOVAL Defendant has filed a timely, verified Petition for Removal, requesting that the Appeals Board rescind the Order dated July 19, 2011, wherein the workers’ compensation administrative law judge (WCJ) closed discovery and continued the case to trial. Defendant contends that applicant did not specify efforts to resolve the dispute in his Declaration of Readiness to Proceed (DOR), that defendant did not get notice of the mandatory settlement conference (MSC) at which the Order issued and thus did not appear, and that defendant has not had the opportunity to complete discovery. Applicant has filed an answer. Applicant, while employed as a truck driver on February 21, 2007, sustained an industrial injury to various body parts. On June 7, 2011, applicant filed a DOR requesting an MSC. On May 19, 2011, defendant filed an Objection to applicant’s DOR.1 The case was scheduled for an MSC on July 19, 2011. It is undisputed that defendant did not appear at the MSC. Defendant contends that it did not receive notice of the MSC. We have searched EAMS to determine when and to whom the notice of the MSC was sent. We have not been able to find any record of the service of the notice. However, applicant has attached to his answer a copy of a notice of hearing prepared by applicant’s attorney noticing the MSC on July 19, 2011, together with a proof of service 1 Applicant’s DOR is dated May 3, 2011, but it was not filed until June 7, 2011. , demonstrating service on defense counsel on June 22, 2011. Because of the conflict between defense counsel’s verified statement that it did not receive notice of the MSC and a
