Court overturns ruling for flight attendant with COVID

The Washington Court of Appeals on Tuesday overturned a jury verdict for a flight attendant who claimed she suffered from an occupational disease due to workplace COVID-19 exposure.

The appellate court, hearing an appeal by Alaska Airlines Inc., ruled that improper jury instructions resulted in a finding that Lisa Azorit-Wortham was entitled to be compensated for COVID-19 related injuries.

The appeals judges remanded the case to a trial judge for a new trial.

The lawsuit arose from Ms. Azorit-Wortham’s claim that she contracted COVID-19 in March 2020, which was the start of the pandemic. She filed an occupational disease claim, which was approved by the Department of Labor & Industries.

Alaska Airlines challenged the decision, which was later reversed by a review board. Ms. Azorit-Wortham appealed to Superior Court, and a jury found in her favor.

On appeal, the airline argued that the jury was instructed to consider the “traveling employee doctrine” in making its decision, but the airline argued that the doctrine only applies to industrial injuries and not occupational diseases.

The appeals court agreed, saying relying on the traveling employee doctrine as a basis for the jury award was not appropriate.

“This legal error was presumptively prejudicial and not harmless, and the presumption has not been overcome,” the court wrote. “Therefore, we reverse and remand for a new trial.”