Present evidence and arguments

If WCAT decides that you need to attend an oral hearing, you will receive a notice of hearing letter which includes:

• The date and time of the hearing
• Instructions on how to attend the hearing
• Information about providing documents and using witnesses
• Information about how to change the date of the hearing

Notice is sent out before the hearing date. Usually, it’s sent out about 10 weeks before the date.

The person who started the appeal must attend. If they do not, their appeal may be dismissed.

The person responding to the appeal will also be invited to attend.

If you plan to bring someone with you, please let WCAT know at least 21 days before the hearing. The people who may attend include:

• Your representative (if you have one)
• Any witnesses you will ask to share information or evidence
• A support person (who is not a witness or a representative)

If you need an interpreter, WCAT will provide one. Let us know that you need an interpreter:

• When you complete the notice of appeal form or notice of participation form
• Or by contacting WCAT at least 2 weeks before the hearing

Friends and relatives cannot be used to interpret.

Provide Information

If you have new information for the vice chair at the hearing, send it to WCAT at least 21 days before the hearing. This will give everyone participating in the appeal enough time to review and prepare. New information might include new medical evidence or other evidence.

If you have new evidence that you did not submit in time, let the vice chair know at your hearing. Be prepared to explain:

• What the new evidence is
• Why it is relevant
• Why you did not provide it earlier

The vice chair will then decide whether to accept it or not. For in-person hearings, you will need to bring the original and an additional 2 copies of any new written evidence.

Prepare Witnesses

You do not need to call witnesses, but sometimes their testimony is helpful to explain or prove what happened. They must have first-hand information about the appeal, not just opinions. If you plan to call witnesses, tell them the date, time and place of the hearing. If the hearing is by phone or video conference, share instructions with them for dialing in or signing in.

WCAT will usually tell you your hearing date at least six weeks ahead of time. If you cannot attend at the scheduled time, you can contact WCAT and ask to change the date or time. This needs to be done within 14 days of getting your first notice to attend the oral hearing.

After that, changes are only made for exceptional circumstances like a personal emergency, not taking a vacation or needing more time to get evidence. WCAT may ask for more information, like a letter from your doctor, to make this kind of last-minute change.

If you appealed a decision, and you do not attend the hearing, your appeal may be dismissed, or decided without a hearing. If you do not attend, WCAT will give you the opportunity to explain why you did not attend and will decide what happens next.

If you are responding to an appeal and you do not attend, WCAT may decide that you are no longer participating in the appeal.

If you are more than 15 minutes late, you may be treated as though you did not attend.

The vice chair will not make a decision at the hearing. The vice chair will make a decision in writing and it will be sent to all parties after the hearing.

If you file an appeal, and you are successful, your expenses to attend the hearing may be repaid, including lost wages for taking time off work, travel, meals and accommodation. Witness expenses may also be reimbursed if their attendance was helpful or if it was reasonable to have their information for the appeal (regardless of the appeal outcome). Employers are not usually reimbursed for costs to attend an oral hearing.

• Amounts are usually paid according to WorkSafeBC policy – see the Rehabilitation Services and Claims Manual Chapter 10, Item 83.00

• Travel costs may be paid for distances that are 20 kilometres or more. Travel must be within B.C. Reimbursement for the full amount of a trip is usually ordered if WCAT requires a party or witness to attend a hearing.

To get reimbursed, make your request for expenses at the oral hearing – the vice chair will ask if you are seeking reimbursement of expenses. The final decision will provide information about payment. You will need to provide an itemized invoice and receipts for travel expenses and lost wages.

If you paid to get new evidence, you can ask WCAT to order that you be reimbursed. This would include situations where you pay for a report or letter from an expert like a doctor, or where you pay for medical records to be translated. It does not include expenses like postage or photocopying.

Even if your appeal is not successful, these expenses are usually reimbursed if the evidence was helpful in making the final decision or if it was reasonable to have the information for the appeal.

Amounts are usually paid according to the following rates or fee schedules. Please note that the fee schedules linked below are provided for convenience and may not be current.

• Medical records: Physicians And Surgeons’ WorkSafeBC Services Agreement (PDF, 89KB)
• Report or opinion from an expert medical witness: Doctors of BC Fees for Uninsured Services (PDF, 163KB)
  • Please first read the General Preamble Clause (PDF, 48KB)
• Report from an independent permanent functional impairment assessment: PFI Fee Schedule (PDF, 118KB)
• Report or records from a physiotherapist: Physiotherapist Fee Schedule (PDF, 255KB)
• Medical legal report or opinion from a chiropractor: Suggested Fee Guide – BC Chiropractic Association
• Report or records from a chiropractor: Suggested Fee Guide – BC Chiropractic Association
• Report or records from a massage therapist: Massage Therapy Services Fee Schedule (PDF, 106KB)
• Report or records from a naturopathic physician: Naturopath Fee Schedule (PDF, 24KB)
• Report or records from a dentist: BC Dental Association Fee Guide (PDF, 145KB)
• Report from a psychologist, including neuropsychological assessments: Psychologist Fee Schedule (PDF, 572KB)
• Report from a functional capacity evaluation (FCE): Functional Capacity Evaluation Services Fee Schedule (PDF, 118KB)
• Employability assessment (EA) or rehabilitation plan (RP): Vocational Rehabilitation Plan Fee Schedule (PDF, 63KB)
• Report from an ergonomic assessment: Suggested Fee Guide – Alliance of Occupational Therapy Professional Associations. Review noteworthy appeals that show how this type of expense has been evaluated: WCAT-2012-02739 (PDF, 59KB), WCAT-2013-02405 (PDF, 97KB)
• Job demands analysis: Return to Work Support Services Fee Schedule (PDF, 129KB)
• Vocational testing or assessment: Vocational Interest and Aptitude Testing (PDF, 99KB), Psycho-Vocational Assessment Services (PDF, 74KB)
• Attendance at a hearing by an expert medical witness (e.g. a doctor or specialist): Doctors of BC Fees for Uninsured Services (PDF, 163KB). Reimbursing non-medical expert witnesses is also possible if their participation is required.
  • Please first read the General Preamble Clause (PDF, 48KB)

For more information on the reimbursement of expert evidence, please see 16.1.3.1 Reimbursement of Expenses for Expert Evidence of the MRPP.

To get reimbursed, submit a written request to WCAT along with:

• An itemized invoice and receipts
• A copy of your letter asking for an expert opinion
• A copy of a report or opinion from an expert along with their invoice for this service
• Reasons why the full amount should be reimbursed (if the expert’s invoice is higher than the fee schedules above)

Make your request when you submit evidence or at your oral hearing. If the vice chair orders appeal expenses to be paid, send your invoice and receipts to WorkSafeBC because they reimburse the expense.