cant open a file unless its associated app is open in foreground

[jpn]

hi

i never noticed this until today.
i cant open a file unless its associated app is open in foreground.

for example, if i want to open a PDF, it will not open if Numbers or Pages or Safari is open in the foreground.
it will open if i minimize unrelated apps and therefore have Desktop or Finder open.

its the same for any file that i have created (PDF, .pages, .numbers, etc.)

my preferred way of opening docs is just look for it in the Recents. it has always found the associated app before, even if its not the foreground open app.
likewise, if i look for the document using Finder (thus having Finder on top) it also will open with no problem.

when i do a check using Info on each file, its set to open with the standard app (i havent every changed this).
and it appears that i do have Read and Write permission already for each one.

is this normal in Catalina? i really havent noticed it before today.

thanks