The Pennsylvania Superior Court quashed an appeal from a workers’ compensation insurer trying to intervene in an action commenced by praecipe for writ of summons. The Court held that the lower court’s order denying intervention was not appealable under Pa.R.A.P. 313(b) because the insurer did not have a legally enforceable interest to file on its own behalf. But to reach that conclusion, the Court dealt with two issues. First, it held that a third party may only intervene in an action commenced by a complaint and not by a praecipe for writ of summons because the latter contains no factual averments on which intervention can be sought. Second, the Court held that Section 319 of the Workers’ Compensation Act does not allow for a workers’ compensation insurer to directly take action against a third-party tortfeasor when neither the employer nor the employee seeks to do so.
