Aetna Life Insurance Co. v. Industrial Accident Commission

HENSHAW, J.

Review of an award of the Industrial Accident Commission. Arthur Rieck was discovered on his father’s ranch, unconscious and with a fractured skull. He was at the time a minor of the age of nineteen years, and was living with his parents at their home' on the ranch. He did such work on the ranch as he was directed to do by his father. No one was an eye-witness to his accident, but the evidence points with strong probability to the fact that while riding a horse to round up mules in a field on the ranch he was thrown and struck on his head. The evidence unquestionably, then, supports the commission’s findings that his injury arose out of the services which he was rendering to his father. The vital question is whether under the evidence he was an employee within the meaning of our law. The case

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arises under the demand of the father against the petitioner for the payment of medical and other expenses incurred by the father and growing out of this injury to his son. The Aetna Life Insurance Company had issued its policy, protecting the father against such claims on the part of his employees. This present claim was pressed upon the ground that the son was such an employee and the commission so held, making its award accordingly.

Section 197 of our Civil Code provides that, “The father and mother of a legitimate unmarried minor child are equally entitled to its custody, services and earnings.” In this class belongs Arthur Rieck, and unquestionably unless there had been some legal change in the status of father and son, each and both were subject to the provisions of this code section and the provisions of section 196 of the same code, which declares that “The parent entitled to the custody of a child must give him support and education suitable to his circumstances.” Section 14 of the compensation act defines an employee as a “person in the service of an employer as de.fined by section 13 hereof under any appointment or contract of hire or apprenticeship express or implied, oral or written, including aliens and also including minors.” In this connection section 1965 of the Civil Code defines a contract of employment in the following language: “The contract of employment is a contract by which one, who is called the employer, engages another, who is called the employee, to do something for the benefit of the employer, or of a third person. ’ ’