Plaintiff Wanda J. Stup, who suffers from lupus and fibromyalgia, won affirmance of a judgment holding that defendant Unum Life Insurance Company of America abused its discretion in denying her request for disability benefits. Although Unum did not dispute the plaintiff’s diagnoses, it had rejected the claim based on its determination that the plaintiff could […]
After winning summary judgment in the trial court, plaintiff Linda Ellis suffered a crushing defeat in the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which rejected her claim for disability coverage.Ellis v. Liberty Life Assurance Company of Boston, 2004 U.S.App.LEXIS 24199 (5th Cir., Nov. 19). Ellis was a loan officer for Chase Manhattan Bank until 1999, […]
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals’ ruling in Jordan v. Northrop Grumman Corp. Welfare Benefit Plan, 2004 U.S.App.LEXIS 10626 (June 1), is one of those cases where plaintiff lawyers are able to learn an important lesson even though this particular plaintiff was unsuccessful.
The definition of disability in an ERISA case should take into account the specific duties of the claimant.
The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals recently decided a disability benefits case involving a medical condition that is drawing increased attention among neurologists. Abram v. Cargill Inc., 2005 U.S. App. LEXIS 1142 (8th Cir., Jan. 24). Plaintiff Ellen Abram applied for disability benefits in 2000 when she could no longer work due to post-polio […]