London Guarantee & Accident Co. v. Industrial Accident Commission

LANGDON, J.

This is a proceeding in

certiorari

to review an award of the Industrial Accident Commission for payment of $150 for the burial expenses of John James

[677]

Uttley Brooke, an up married minor nineteen years of age, who was drowned in Santa Monica Bay on April 8, 1926, while in the service of the Morris Pleasure Pishing, Inc. The petitioner was the insurance carrier of the employer; and the question presented is whether the case must be relegated to the exclusive cognizance of a court of admiralty, or may be brought within the purview of the Workmen’s Compensation Act of this state.

On a petition to the Industrial Accident Commission filed by the mother and the stepfather of the deceased, hearings were had and findings made that Brooke, while employed as a spare skipper, met his death by drowning in an accident occurring in the course of, and arising out of, his employment; that he was not at the time engaged in maritime employment; and that both he and his employer were subject to the provisions of the Workmen’s Compensation Act (Stats. 1913, p. 279). The commission further found that neither the mother nor the stepfather of the deceased was dependent upon him; and, accordingly, the award was limited to the reasonable expenses of burial, which were fixed at $150.

The evidence taken at the hearing showed the facts to be as follows: The Morris Pleasure Pishing, Inc., is a corporation which carries on the business of maintaining and operating from Santa Monica Bay a small fleet of fishing vessels for the accommodation of the public seeking recreation in deep-sea fishing. In the fishing seasons its practice has been to have excursions daily from Santa Monica Bay to the ocean fishing grounds, a distance of three to five miles with fixed charges both for half-day and full-day trips. Por use in this business the company has several vessels, ranging from four to fourteen tons registry, equipped with gas engines and capable of cruising a distance of five hundred miles. Thé business has been confined entirely to the maintenance of these pleasure-fishing vessels and the transportation of patrons to and fro by water, except that excursionists have also been supplied with bait. As one of the necessary incidents of its business the company employs seamen to navigate its vessels; and before and at the time of the accident which occasioned Brooke’s death, he was in the company’s employ as an apprentice navigator and seaman. In that capacity he made daily trips