Donahue v. Industrial Commission

In Donahue v. Industrial Commission, 178 Ariz. 173, 176-77, 871 P.2d 720, 723-24 (App. 1993), the Court considered whether the phrase "regularly employed" in 23-902(A) is intended to subject to the Act all those who hire workers for tasks in the employer's usual trade or business, or only those who, in the normal or usual course of their business, hire others. The Court interpreted the phrase to mean the latter, which focuses on the employer's hiring practices, rather than the former, which focuses on the nature of the employee's duties. Id. The Court's construction of 23-902(A) in Donahue was based on policy considerations enunciated in Marshall v. Industrial Commission, 62 Ariz. 230, 156 P.2d 729 (1945), and subsequent cases interpreting 23-902(A)'s predecessor statutes that defined "regularly employed" the same way. 178 Ariz. at 177-78, 871 P.2d at 724-25.