The Dec. 21 ruling allowed the family of Arturo Ek of Los Angeles, who died in April 2020 at the age of 72 from COVID-19, to file a wrongful death lawsuit against See's Candies Inc, which is owned by Berkshire Hathaway.
See's wife, Matilde Ek, said she was infected by the coronavirus while working inches away from sick coworkers, and her husband caught it from her at home.
The decision is the first by an appeals court to allow a novel "take-home" COVID-19 lawsuit, in which a business is sued for damages for allegedly violating safety protocols and causing a chain of infections beyond the company's premises.
See's, which did not respond to a request for comment, has the option of filing an appeal with the California Supreme Court.
According to legal experts, the See's decision is only binding in California, but it may provide guidance to judges in other states.
In court papers filed before the See's decision, business groups warned that such a ruling could lead to lawsuits by an infected employee's family and friends, as well as anyone infected by that circle of people.
It was dubbed a "never-ending chain" of liability by the groups.
To combat COVID-19 lawsuits, including take-home cases, business interests persuaded at least 30 states to pass laws making them difficult to bring, often by requiring plaintiffs to demonstrate gross negligence.
California was not one of them.
"The appellate court's decision could expose California employers to frivolous COVID-related lawsuits, further limiting small businesses' ability to recover," said Kyla Christoffersen Powell, president of the Civil Justice Association of California, a business group.
A California construction worker and his wife cited the decision to a U.S. appeals court in San Francisco just hours after it was issued. The couple is attempting to resurrect a previous lawsuit against Victory Woodworks Inc.
At least 23 take-home COVID-19 lawsuits have been filed in the United States, all of which are still in the early stages. Amazon.com Inc, Walmart Inc, Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd, Conagra Brands Inc, and Pilgrim's Pride, an affiliate of meat producer JBS SA, are among the defendants.
Employees were packed into work vans, symptomatic workers were kept in company dorms, and infected people were not screened before entering a worksite, according to the lawsuits. They are suing for compensation on behalf of employees' children and spouses who were placed on ventilators or died as a result of the disease.
According to Stephen Jones, general counsel of Praedicat Inc, a firm that evaluates risks for insurers, at least six of the lawsuits have been dismissed, including one against Southwest Airlines Co, and six, including two against McDonald's Corp, appear to have resulted in a private settlement.
Employees are not the only ones affected. Celebrity Cruises was sued in federal court in Miami for a COVID-19 outbreak on a ship that infected two passengers who passed the disease on to their children. Later this month, the two parties are scheduled to begin mediation.
"We won't know one way or the other if there will be an explosion of cases until you get a jury verdict," Jones said.
The See's decision helped to answer an initial question that had hung over take-home COVID-19 cases by determining that employers are not protected from lawsuits by workers' compensation. In exchange for preventing lawsuits, the system provides quick payments without the need to prove fault for workplace injuries.
The California Court of Appeal, Second Appellate District, ruled that Arturo Ek's death was caused by his wife acting as a virus conduit. His death was not caused by her disease, as See's had claimed.
The Eks must still persuade a judge that See's owed a duty to employees' families and acquaintances. Plaintiffs failed to establish this in cases against Southwest Airlines, an Illinois meat processing company, and a Maryland hospital that were dismissed.
To win, plaintiffs must also demonstrate a link between the workplace and the case of take-home pay. COVID-19.
"You'd have to have a situation where an employee came to and from work and neither the employee nor anyone else in the family/household went anywhere else," Amberly Morgan, an attorney with Fisher Phillips, which defends employers, explained.