California AB 1309 Sports Update

ATB LAW NEWS: AB 1309 has been approved by the California Senate and Assembly. The new law would add language to Labor Code section 3600.5 saying that an athlete is temporarily in the state and not eligible to file a claim in California, if during the 365 days before his last day of work in the state, he performed less than 20% of his duty days in California.

The bill goes on to define the word “duty” as any day spent performing activities under the direction of the team. The new law would also provide a two prong test to determine if an athlete can file a cumulative trauma injury (CT claim) or an occupational disease claim. The athlete:

A. must have played for two years for a California team or worked more than 20% of his duty days in California or for a California team.

B. Must have worked for fewer than seven seasons for a team outside of California.

The new law would apply to any and all claims filed after September 15, 2013. The bill has been passed by the Senate and Assembly and the Governor has until Mid October to sign into law.

Michael J.  Pang, Managing Partner, Sports Law Practice Group