The plaintiff, a 55-year-old night cleaner, filed for total and permanent disability benefits due to osteoarthritis of her right knee. The case is Demirovic v. Building Service 32B-J Pension Fund, 2006 U.S.App.LEXIS 25891, from the 2d U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Oct. 19, 2006. Accompanying her application was a notice of award from the Social […]
In deciding whether an insurer properly terminated the plaintiff’s benefits, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Osborne v. Hartford Life & Accident Insur. Co., 2006 U.S.App.LEXIS 24640 (Oct. 3), first noted the issue turned on the meaning of the insured’s ”own occupation” as used in the policy. The plaintiff was the chairman and […]
In a recent case, despite the application of an arbitrary and capricious standard of review, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals concluded that when MetLife terminated Wanda Glenn’s benefits, its actions were not ”the result of a deliberative process or that it was based on substantial evidence.” Glenn v. MetLife, 2006 U.S.App.LEXIS 22432 (Sept […]
The issue in the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling High v. E-Systems Inc Long Term Disability Income and Death Benefit Plan, 2006 U.S.App.LEXIS 19613, (Aug. 3), was whether MetLife had the authority to offset Veterans Administration disability benefits that the plaintiff had been receiving even before he was hired by E-Systems in 1982 […]
A decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit reveals how a court misunderstood key definitions in a disability case.