Court in ERISA appeal finds classic LTD disability insurer cherry-picking Disability insurers have an arsenal of tactics to deny or terminate disability benefit claims. One common tactic is “cherry-picking” in which the insurer or its claims administrator picks...
Holding Insurance Companies Accountable For The Coverage They Promised And The Benefits You Deserve
Helping People Like You With Their Disability, Life And Long-Term Care Benefit Claims
ERISA
COVID-19 Total Disability and First Responders & Healthcare Workers
For most of the past year, hospital based nurses, doctors, and medical staff as well as first responders have been repeatedly exposed to the traumatizing effects of COVID-19. Watching patients suffer from an illness about which we have little understanding and having...
Long-term disability policy interpretation under ERISA
A federal court in Texas recently found in favor of a long-term disability (LTD) claimant whose insurer had terminated his benefits. The March 10 opinion illustrates federal rules for interpreting disability insurance policies. In Chavez v. Standard Insurance Co., the...
ERISA Disability Insurance Appeals – Appealing A Long Term Disability Denial
Individuals who receive short term disability and long term disability coverage as a benefit of their employment are often shocked when their insurance carrier unreasonably delays the review and approval of a claim or unjustifiably denies or terminates their...
Insurance company faces alleged violation of ERISA
A long-term disability policy is designed to help a Florida resident pay for costs related to treating medical issues. According to one woman, Liberty Life Assurance Co. failed to live up to the terms of a policy that she participated in. The suit was filed in U.S....
Important Tips for Appealing an ERISA Disability Insurance Denial
A denial of disability insurance benefits too often comes as a surprise to individuals who file legitimate claims and are genuinely unable to competently perform their job duties with reasonable continuity. Making the decision to apply for disability insurance...
The Eleventh Circuit Overturns a Grant of Summary Judgment to United of Omaha in an ERISA Long-Term Disability Claim, Determining That Muscle Spasms and Back Pain Are Not Pre-Existing Conditions.
In a recent case, Horneland v. United Of Omaha Insurance Company, No. 16-16935, __F.App'x__, 2017 WL 5508496 (11th Cir. Nov. 17, 2017), the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a federal district court's grant of summary judgment to United of Omaha ("UOO") in an...
Court of Appeals Rules Against Reliance Standard Life Insurance Company and Upholds an Award of Disability Insurance Benefits Under ERISA Policy, Costs, and Attorneys’ Fees.
In a recent case, Marcin v. Reliance Standard Life Insurance Company and Mitre Corporation Long Term Disability Insurance Program, No. 16-7125, __F.3d__, 2017 WL 2818648 (D.C. Cir. June 30, 2017), the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, ruled against...
Federal District Court Finds that Hartford Failed to Provide a Claimant with a Full and Fair Review of her ERISA Governed Disability Insurance Claim.
In a recent case out of the Southern District of Indiana, Miller v. The Hartford Life And Accident Insurance Co., & Springleaf Finance, Inc. Disability Plan, No. 116CV00166TWPDML, 2017 WL 2214938 (S.D. Ind. May 19, 2017), the federal court found that Hartford...
Reliance Standard Life Insurance Company Denial Tactics Dismissed By Court in ERISA Disability Case
Most individuals who have filed any type of insurance related claim have experienced the delay and denial tactics used by their insurance company to avoid payment. Disability carriers often take extreme and arguably egregious measures to "prove" that a claimant is not...