State ex rel. Johnson v. Ryan

{¶ 1} The Industrial Commission of Ohio determined that appellant, Olivia Johnson, was not the common-law wife of the late Silas Johnson and thus could not receive death benefits arising from the occupational disease that claimed his life. The Court of Appeals for Franklin County upheld that decision and denied Johnson’s request for a writ of mandamus. Johnson now appeals to this court as of right.

{¶ 2} In the course of the proceedings below, the matter was referred to a magistrate pursuant to Civ.R. 53 and Loc.R. 12(M) of the Tenth District Court of Appeals. The magistrate, in turn, issued a…