Ex-Rams Player Denied California Workers’ Compensation Claim

California lacks jurisdiction over the disability claims of an NFL player who spent his first season with the Los Angeles Rams, state appeals justices ruled.

They overturned the judgment of the state’s Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board—which said it covers any athlete who ever signed a California contract—writing that the WCAB “completely (and improperly)” ignored the language of state law.

Wayne Gandy, who spent 15 seasons with the NFL from 1994 until he retired in 2009, isn’t covered by state workers’ compensation law for his claims of cumulative injury, California Court of Appeal, Fourth District justices said.

The WCAB’s interpretation “would ...