Workers’ Compensation · Primary-source case analysis

Davis: The Treating-Physician Presumption Could First Be Raised at Trial

By Aneeta Mishra and Timothy Chan

Published September 13, 2026

Davis v. Interim Healthcare distinguished trial evidence from a rebuttable statutory presumption and decided when that presumption had to be raised in the workers’ compensation process.

Competing medical opinions framed the dispute

The applicant sustained admitted cumulative and specific injuries while working as a nurse. Her primary treating physician and the defense qualified medical examiner disagreed about permanent disability, work restrictions, further treatment, and her ability to return to work.

The presumption was omitted at the settlement conference

The pretrial statement identified disability, apportionment, treatment, fees, and contribution issues but did not separately list the former Labor Code section 4062.9 treating-physician presumption. The applicant invoked it at trial, and the workers’ compensation judge treated the omission as a waiver.

A presumption was not undisclosed evidence

The Board explained that the settlement-conference statute closed discovery and required disclosure of evidence and issues. A presumption, however, is an assumption applied after foundational facts are established rather than evidence itself. The former section 4062.9 presumption therefore could be raised when the medical dispute was tried.

The Board set a procedural boundary

The WCAB held that prudent counsel should identify the presumption at the mandatory settlement conference, but failure to do so did not prevent reliance on it at trial. A party could not wait until reconsideration to invoke it. Because the cited treating-physician regime was later repealed, Davis is primarily useful for its distinction between evidence, issues, and presumptions.

Key takeaways

• List all disputed issues at the mandatory settlement conference.
• Distinguish evidentiary disclosure from operation of a legal presumption.
• Invoke an applicable presumption no later than trial.
• Confirm that the governing statute remains in force for the injury and proceeding.