In 1907, the California Legislature enacted the first limitation upon use of the "assumption of risk" doctrine and the "fellow-servant rule." The doctrines were used as a defense in a claim of negligence brought by an injured employee against his or her employer. The employer was held liable for injuries resulting from industrial accidents caused by unsafe conditions and hazards of the employment except where it could be shown that the employee fully understood and appreciated the dangers of such risk of the employment. Likewise, liability was imposed on the employer for injuries resulting from industrial accidents caused by the negligence of a fellow-employee if the fellow-employee was engaged in a work department, other than the injured employee's work department, or where the negligent fellow-employee was superior in rank to the injured employee.
Legal actions, however, brought by the employee against his or her employer were still tried as civil actions before juries.