State Compensation Insurance Fund v. Industrial Accident Commission

I dissent. The crucial issue is conceded to be whether the injury “arose out of” the employment. The majority assumes to settle the question by the observation that the Constitution declares that injury so sustained shall be deemed compensable “irrespective of the fault of any party”; that since aggression is fault, it is therefore not a defense. This oversimplified solution is contrary to established state policy and decisional law.

The holding in Pacific Emp. Ins. Co. v. Industrial Acc. Com., 26 Cal.2d 286 [158 P.2d 9, 159 A.L.R. 313], does not sustain the proposition. As the majority…