by LawAdvocate on Thu May 23, 2019 12:35 pm
So, no the Applicant does not have to show up.
It may behoove the lien claimants however to have the Applicant show up, as proving AOE/COE on medicals alone and that it was reported prior to termination is a huge burden. If the medicals are substantial enough, they may suffice. I saw a lien once where the medicals were substantial. There were emails attached to the medicals that revealed the Applicant reported it to his manager. I confirmed the emails did exist and that answered a lot of questions.
So it is fact situation dependent, sometimes the Applicant is not a good advocate on their own defense and going with written evidence is the best way to proceed. At this point, the defense of course has the ability to call the Applicant as a witness but usually doesn't do so, unless they need the deposition transcript to be admitted.