State Of California, Department Of Corrections And Rehabilitations And Rehabilitation, legally uninsured and adjusted by State Compensation Insurance Fund Justin Crovetti WORKERS’ COMPENSATION APPEALS BOARDSTATE OF CALIFORNIAJUSTIN CROVETTI, Applicant,vs.STATE OF CALIFORNIA, DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS AND REHABILITATION, legally uninsured and adjusted by STATE COMPENSATION INSURANCE FUND, Defendants.Case No. ADJ8615416 (Marina Del Rey District Office)OPINION AND ORDER DENYING PETITION FOR REMOVAL Defendant seeks removal of the Minute Order issued by the workers’ compensation administrative law judge (WCJ) on April 9, 2018, wherein the WCJ set this matter for trial on May 29, 2018. Defendant objects that the matter should not have been set for trial because it has not yet completed discovery, and in particular has not yet had applicant evaluated by its vocational expert. We received an Answer. We also received a Report and Recommendation on Petition for Removal (Report) from the WCJ, recommending we deny removal. Based on our review of the record, we will deny the Petition for Removal. Applicant filed an Application for Adjudication, claiming a cumulative trauma injury to multiple body parts sustained from January 1, 2000 through November 6, 2012 while employed by defendant as a correctional officer. As part of the discovery process, applicant’s attorney suggested in March 2015 that the parties have applicant evaluated by an agreed vocational expert. Defendant declined this proposal. (See Petition for Removal, at p. 2.) Applicant proceeded to an evaluation with a vocational expert, Robert Liebman, M.S., on November 27, 2017. Defendant received Liebman’s report on December 1, 2017. (Ibid) On December 27, 2017, applicant filed a Declaration of Readiness, seeking a Mandatory Settlement Conference. Defendant objected, on the ground that it had not finished discovery and that , had arranged for its own vocational ex
