Post-disability earnings – profit distribution or income?

Two recent cases looked at monies paid to disability insurance claimants after the onset of disability and analyzed the question of whether the monies constituted income or profit distributions.  Although the claimants lost in both Fine v. Sun Life Assur. Co. of Canada, 2015 WL 1534513 (E.D. Va. April 6, 2015) and in Bencivenga v. […]

What are pre-disability earnings?

A recent ruling received by DeBofsky, Sherman & Casciari examined the issue of how to determine pre-disability earnings.  In Cheney v. Standard Ins. Co., 2015 WL 2015 U.S.Dist.LEXIS 30918 (N.D.Ill. March 13, 2015)(Issue: Pre-Disability Earnings). In an earlier ruling (Cheney v. Standard Ins. Co., No. 13 C 4269, 2014 WL 4259861 (N.D. Ill. Aug. 28, […]

Releases of employment-related claims may unintentionally release ERISA benefit claims

Signing a severance agreement or settlement agreement with an employer that contains a general release may unintentionally bar a claimant from pursuing a disability benefit claim under ERISA.  That was the lesson learned by Dr. Thomas Gonda, Jr., who worked as a thoracic surgeon at Kaiser Permanente until he became disabled due to cognitive impairments […]