Summary 2010 WY 48

Summary of Decision issued April 22, 2010

Summaries are prepared by Law Librarians and are not official statements of the Wyoming Supreme Court.

Case Name: Wyo. Dept. of Employment v. Jolley, Castillo, Drennon, LTD.

Citation: 2010 WY 48

Docket Number: S-09-0175

Appeal from the District Court of Natrona County, the Honorable David B. Park, Judge.

Representing Appellant Wyo. Dep’t of Employment: Bruce A. Salzburg, Wyoming Attorney General; Matthew J. Fermelia, Senior Assistant Attorney General; William L. Weaver, Senior Assistant Attorney General.

Representing Appellee Jolley, Castillo, Drennon, Ltd.: Stephenson D. Emory of Williams, Porter, Day & Neville, PC, Casper, Wyoming.

Facts/Discussion: The Department of Employment, Unemployment Insurance Commission (Commission) appealed the district court’s reversal of the Commission’s decision which found that Jolley, Castillo, Drennon, Ltd., d/b/a Sierra Engineering (Sierra) had payroll for services performed by employees subscribing it to unemployment tax under the Wyoming Employment Security Law (WESL).
The Commission’s decision incorporated many findings of fact made by the hearing officer and set forth dozens of its own, relating to many of the consultants in order to show that they were employees and not independent contractors because they did not meet the three prongs of the independent contractor test set forth in the statutes. The Court did not address all the findings because there were at least eight consultants who were undisputedly paid wages by Sierra for services performed in Wyoming between the years 2004 through 2006. There was no evidence in the record to support finding that they were independent contractors. In litigating the issue, Sierra treated its consultants as a class of workers however the statutes state it is the employer’s burden to prove that each individual consultant meets the elements of the statute.

Conclusion: The Court found the Commission’s decision that Sierra had payroll for services paid in Wyoming during the years 2004 through 2006 was supported by substantial evidence in the record and that Sierra failed to meet its burden of proving that all of its consultants were independent contractors. An audit remains to be performed by the UI Tax Division to determine precisely which consultants were in fact “employees” under the WESL and the amount of unemployment taxes Sierra owes for those “employees.” Having found that there was substantial evidence in the record to support the Commission’s decision, the district court was reversed, the Commission’s decision was affirmed and the case was remanded.

Reversed and remanded.

C.J. Voigt delivered the decision.

Link: http://tinyurl.com/2fd3ohm .

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