Deadlines carry little weight if there are no repercussion for missing them. Take the case of Gatti v. Reliance Standard Life Insurance Co., 2005 U.S.App.LEXIS 9895 (9th Cir., May 31), which involved a claimant who received disability benefits for nearly seven years due to complications of Hepatitis B. The insurer cut off benefits in 2000, […]
In a very significant ruling, the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals offered its view on the scope of a de novo judicial review of a benefits denial claim governed by the ERISA law: ”The claimant was not entitled to trial or to admit desired new evidence outside the administrative record or to discovery.” Plaintiff […]
A production supervisor for an engineering company sought disability benefits after aggravating a back injury when he fell down a flight of stairs. Plaintiff Alfredo Ruiz applied for benefits from Continental Casualty Co. and submitted certification from his attending physician, who reported that due to physical limitations, Ruiz ”may not work.” Additional records were later […]
The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals recently served up a surprise: a comprehensive signed opinion that was issued as unpublished, even though it covers significant ground and makes precedential findings in the course of reversing a denial of disability benefits. Moon v. Unum Provident Corp., 2005 U.S. App. LEXIS 4775 (6th Cir., March 22).
Our law firm recently won a summary judgment ruling in a case that is instructive to litigants having to deal with disability due to severe pain.