Fossum v. State Accident Insurance Fund

This is a workers’ compensation claim under the Occupational Disease Law, ORS 656.802 to 656.824, brought by the widow of a worker who died from meso-thelioma, a form of cancer caused by exposure to asbestos. There are two issues: The first is which of several potentially causal employers is liable for compensation. The second is whether an inference is permissible that the deceased worker’s former employer was insured by the State Industrial Accident Commission (SIAC), predecessor to the State Accident Insurance Fund (SAIF), where applicable law required the employer to secure coverage by…