Fields Corp. v. Department of Labor & Industries

Fields Corporation sought equitable relief from res judicata. The trial court granted such relief, and we affirm.

Under Washington’s Industrial Insurance Act, an employer has the option of enrolling in what the Department of Labor and Industries refers to as a “retrospective rating program.”1 An employer who selects that option pays a standard industrial insurance premium for the ensuing coverage year. At the end of that year, the Department retrospectively calculates the premium that the employer should have paid according to the employer’s actual claim experience; compares the retrospective…