What the panel ordered
Petition for reconsideration dismissed; petition for removal denied.
New Mexico Mutual petitioned for reconsideration and removal of a WCJ order denying its petition to dismiss joinder; the WCAB treated the motion as a petition for reconsideration (dismissed) and for removal (denied).
What was disputed, and how it came out
Each issue the panel decided, with the reasoning it gave. An outcome is what this panel did on this record — not a rule, and not a prediction.
The November 18, 2024 order was not a final order as it did not determine any substantive right or liability; removal was not warranted because New Mexico Mutual did not show substantial prejudice or irreparable harm, and reconsideration would be an adequate remedy after a final decision.
From the decision · page 7of Joinder was not a final order. Rather, this was a pre-trial, interlocutory order that did not determine any substantive right or liability and did not determine a threshold issue. Notably, the WCJ has not yet ruled on SCIF's underlying Petition for Joinder. Accordingly, the November 18, 2024 Order is not a "final" decision. We will, therefore, dismiss New Mexico Mutual's Petition for Reconsideration and treat it as a Petition for Removal.