Tag Archives: ERISA
"Dismemberment by Severance" v. Loss of Use: A Smorgasbord of Interesting Disability Cases
Fier v. Unum Life Ins. Co. of America, 629 F.3d 1095 (9th Cir. 2011)
Facts and holding: In 1992, Robert Fier (“Fier”) was shot in the neck and rendered permanently quadriplegic. He filed a claim for benefits with Unum Life Insurance C…
LINA (Cigna) Life Insurance Denial: The Discretionary Clause Strikes Again
A recent Wall Street Journal article tells the story of our client Celina Whinery, who is suing Life Insurance Company of North America (LINA), a unit of Cigna, after the insurer refused to pay benefits the policy promised upon her husband’s death be…
Burden of Proof: The "What Changed?" Argument from "A Smorgasbord of Interesting Disability Cases"
Muniz v. Amec Construction Mgmt., 623 F.3d 1290 (9th Cir. 2010)
Facts and holding: Due to his HIV diagnosis, in 1992, Dierro Muniz (“Muniz”) began receiving long term disability benefits under his ERISA-governed long-term disability i…
A Smorgasbord of Interesting Disablity Cases: Abuse of Discretion / Objective Evidence of Disability
Hagerty v. American Airlines Long Term Disability Plan, 2010 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 91995 (N.D. Cal. 2010)
Facts and holding: On November 15, 2004, Brian Hagerty (“Hagerty”), a flight attendant, filed a claim for long term disability benefi…
Third Circuit Rules in Favor of Personal Injury Victim in ERISA Lien Case
In US Airways, Inc. v. McCutchen, 2011 WL 5557411 (3rd Cir. Nov. 16, 2011), an ERISA plan sought reimbursement of 100% of what it had paid for medical bills for a car crash victim even though the victim had not been fully reimbursed because of limited …
Insurers That Fund ERISA Plans and Administer Claims Are Proper Defendants in Lawsuits for Benefits
Martin E. Rosen and Misty A. Murray
In Cyr v. Reliance Standard Ins. Co., 2011 U.S. App. LEXIS 12601 (9th Cir. 2011), an en banc panel of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals was presented with the issue of whether ERISA authorizes actions to reco…
United States Supreme Court Holds that Summary Plan Descriptions are Not Part of the Plan
In a significant loss for employees, the United States Supreme Court has determined that a pension plan’s Summary Plan Description ("SPD") is not a part of the plan itself (CIGNA Corp. v. Amara).
The decision, supported by all eight jus…
United States Supreme Court Holds that Summary Plan Descriptions are Not Part of the Plan
In a significant loss for employees, the United States Supreme Court has determined that a pension plan’s Summary Plan Description ("SPD") is not a part of the plan itself (CIGNA Corp. v. Amara).
The decision, supported by all eight jus…
Possible Genetic Underpinning for Anorexia Discovered
Anorexia risk may be genetic, reports a new study in Molecular Psychology. The study was the largest ever conducted to look for genetic markers for anorexia and found both variations in gene sequences and in segments of DNA either duplicated…
