If you have had a disability or life insurance claim denied, you likely heard some version of this: “We have reviewed the file, and we have determined you are not entitled to benefits.” No matter how many medical records you have submitted or how legitimate your condition is, the denial can feel like a dead end.
But what if it is not?
At DeBofsky Law, we spent decades proving that bad denials do not just deserve to be overturned, they can be used to change the legal landscape entirely. It is why our tagline is not just a slogan.
We don’t just follow the law. We make it.
Litigating for More Than One Person at a Time
Most people understandably want their individual claim resolved, fast and fairly. But sometimes, fairness requires more than a single win. It requires challenging the rules that allow insurers to deny legitimate claims in the first place.
That is why we litigate the hard cases, through trial, and often all the way to the U.S. Court of Appeals. We take on the fights most firms are not built for, and when we win, the ripple effects extend far beyond a single client.
What It Looks Like to Make the Law
Some insurers follow a troubling pattern: deny valid claims using technicalities, then hide behind legal ambiguity. We have spent decades challenging those tactics, and changing the legal standards that allow them.
Ladd v. ITT Corporation
After helping our client win Social Security Disability benefits, MetLife used that same approval to deny her long-term disability claim. We challenged the inconsistency, and the court agreed. The ruling set a precedent: insurers cannot use Social Security wins when it benefits them, then ignore them when it does not.
Herzberger v. Standard Insurance
Many ERISA policies are written to tip the legal standard in favor of the insurer. In Herzberger, we argued that vague language should not give insurers that advantage, and the court agreed. The decision led to fairer judicial review for future disability claimants.
Holmstrom v. MetLife
MetLife denied benefits based on the claim that our client’s pain was “subjective” and unsupported by objective tests, even after surgery and multiple doctors confirmed her limitations. We proved that pain is real, and shifting the evidentiary bar midstream is not fair. The court’s ruling now protects others facing similar denials.
Scanlon v. LINA
Our client, a highly skilled IT engineer, was denied benefits despite debilitating pain and sleep issues. We demonstrated how his symptoms directly impaired his ability to perform a cognitively demanding job. The court recognized that disability is no one-size-fits-all, and sided with our client.
Our wins are decisions that reshape how disability claims are judged across the country.
Why That Matters to You
Maybe your medical condition doe not show up on an MRI. Your job may require precision or judgment that your symptoms now compromise. Maybe the insurer is using boilerplate logic to downplay the impact of your diagnosis.
If any of that sounds familiar, you are not alone, and you are not without recourse.
We have been where you are, and we have taken clients just like you all the way to justice. Along the way, we helped create the very precedents that now make it easier to win.
One Case Can Change Everything
We know what is at stake in these cases, your health, your income, your future. That is why we do not back down. And it is why we spent decades not just advocating for clients, but shaping the law itself to make things better for those who come next.
If your claim has been denied, do not settle for a law firm that plays within the system.
Work with one that is proven it can change the system. Work with DeBofksy Law
