The "going and coming" rule is a deceptively simple one. There is no reference to the "going and coming" rule concept in the Labor Code. However, the rule has developed over time by case law, essentially holding that the employer is not liable for injuries which occur during an employee's routine commute. However, it is the exceptions to this rule that catch practitioners unaware and lead, in many cases, to unintended consequences. The rationale for the rule is easy to grasp. The test for an industrial injury has two prongs: (1) AOE - The injury arises out of employment; and (2) COE - The injury occurs in the course of employment. The second prong of this test is not met for an injury that occurs in the course of a routine commute, because the injury has not occurred in the course of employment. The rationale is that the employee is not providing a "service" to the employer, and the employer is not receiving a "benefit" from the employee. But what if the employee is providing a benefit or service to the employer during this commute time? Does that convert a non-industrial injury into an industrial one? Perhaps. And that is where the many exceptions to the "going and coming" rule come into play...read more.