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By Eman Yazdchi, Esq. · Certified Specialist in Workers' Compensation Law, State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization
In California, Labor Code §4062.2 governs the QME panel strike procedure for represented workers. Each party strikes one of three Qualified Medical Evaluators from the panel, and the remaining physician issues the medical-legal evaluation. Yazdchi Law, a Certified Specialist in Workers' Compensation Law firm, handles California §4062.2 QME selection statewide. Request a free case review.
Under California Labor Code §4062.2, when a California injured worker is represented by an attorney and a medical-legal dispute arises (the workers' compensation insurer denies the claim, the parties disagree on causation, disability, or treatment), the worker or insurer requests a three-physician Qualified Medical Evaluator (QME) panel from the Medical Unit of the Division of Workers' Compensation. Each party then has 10 days to strike one of the three QMEs; the remaining physician examines the worker and issues the medical-legal report that controls the disputed issues.
Under California Labor Code §4062.2, either party initiates the panel request by serving the other party with a written objection identifying the disputed medical issue (compensability, apportionment, return to work, future medical care). After the objection is served, either party may request a panel from the DWC Medical Unit; the Medical Unit randomly selects three QMEs in the relevant specialty and serves the panel on both parties.
Under California Labor Code §4062.2, each party has 10 days from receipt of the panel to strike one of the three QMEs. The strikes are simultaneous, not sequential — one party does not see the other's strike before making its own. The remaining QME — the one neither party struck — is the assigned medical-legal evaluator. If a party fails to strike within the 10-day window, the other party gets to choose the QME from the remaining two.
The assigned QME under California Labor Code §4062.2 examines the California injured worker and issues a written medical-legal report addressing the disputed issues — compensability, the AMA Guides Whole Person Impairment percentage, apportionment under California Labor Code §4663, the date of maximum medical improvement, and any future medical care. The QME's report is admissible at the WCAB and is generally given substantial weight. The QME applies the AMA Guides 5th Edition and the Permanent Disability Rating Schedule under California Labor Code §4660.
California Labor Code §4062.2 governs the panel QME process for represented workers when the parties cannot agree on an evaluator. If both parties agree on a single physician, that physician is the Agreed Medical Evaluator (AME) rather than a panel QME. AMEs are typically more experienced California medical-legal evaluators with strong reputations on both sides of the workers' compensation bar. The AME's report carries even more weight than a panel QME because it reflects mutual agreement.
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Tap to call →Last reviewed by Eman Yazdchi, Esq., May 2026.
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