Disability Insurance Cases Nationwide

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Resolved Cases:
Insurance Sales Agent gets LTD Claim approved a second time after Attorney Alexander Palamara files second appeal to Prudential.
LTD Claim Approved for a Second Time for an Insurance Sales Agent after Prudential Denies Claim Based on Self-Reported Physical Capabilities

Disability Insurance News:
Washington District Court overturns denial of benefits to former Boeing Employee.
Court Finds Aetna Had No Credible Argument Whatsoever To Support Its Decision To Deny Benefits To Claimant With MS

A recent decision from the United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee established strong arguments in support of total disability for an OB/GYN suffering from an injury to her right index finger. In Nylander v. Unum Life Insurance Company of America (Unum) the Court was tasked with ruling on a Motion for Summary Judgement filed by Unum in which Unum was asking the Court to dismiss Dr. Nylander’s claim for total disability benefits. For reasons discussed below the Court denied Unum’s motion and in doing so allowed Dr. Nylander’s claim for total disability to proceed through to trial.

There are certain legal factors that must be determined by a Judge when entering a ruling on a Motion for Summary Judgment, the most important being a determination as to the existence of a material issue of fact for a decision maker (Jury) to consider. This article will focus on the factors that the Court deemed were sufficient to establish a material issue of fact in Dr. Nylander’s claim for total disability benefits that resulted in the case not being dismissed. It should also be noted that Dr. Nylander’s disability insurance policy was an Individual Disability Income/Insurance (IDI) policy and not an employer provided group disability policy governed by ERISA. As such Dr. Nylander has a great deal more rights as it relates to trial- including a jury trial, live testimony, the ability to take depositions, etc.
Continue Reading Court Finds Evidence of Total Disability for OB/GYN With Finger Injury

Resolved Cases:
Attorney Stephen Jessup of Dell & Schaefer successfully wins disability insurance benefits to an IT Manager suffering from Multiple Sclerosis.
Lincoln Approves Disability Benefits Following Second Appeal

Resolved Cases:
A former employee of the National Student Clearinghouse is finally on claim after an appeal by Dell & Schaefer. Though benefits have been approved for his mental health disorder, Dell & Schaefer will not prove to Mutual of Omaha that the client is physically disabled as well.
After an appeal, a former Director of Information Security, gets disability benefits approved for mental health disorder. The fight for long term disability benefits for client’s physical limitations continues

Disability Insurance News:
6th circuit Court of appeals overturns denial of benefits to claimant with EDS.
Court Criticizes Lina For Failing to Perform Independent Examination

Disability Insurance News:
Reliance Standard overturns a denial of disability benefits to Project Manager suffering from Chronic Pain following an appeal submitted by Attorney Stephen Jessup.
Reliance Standard Reinstates Disability Benefits to Project Manager

Disability Insurance News:
Tennessee Federal court denies Unum’s Motion for Summary Judgment and holds a functional capacity evaluation is objective evidence of gynecologist’s inability to perform surgery.
Unum Motion to Deny Total Disability Benefits to OB/GYN Denied by Tennessee Judge

Resolved Cases:
Attorneys with Attorneys Dell & Schaefer have handled thousands of Long Term Disability claims with all the major insurance companies and have seen the changes that have occurred over the years. Here are some recent trends seen with 10 of the major companies:
Recent Disability Insurance Company Trends

Resolved Cases:
A senior merchant for Express , Inc., who suffers from the effects of a traumatic brain injury gets LTD claim approved after appeal by Attorney Alexander Palamara.
Senior Merchant of American Fashion Retailer Giant gets LTD Claim Approved After Appeal to Reliance Standard

Disability Insurance News:
A California federal court recently reversed Metlife’s denial of long term disability benefits for a claimant with heart disease. Metlife attempted to rely on a ejection fraction rate reading as a basis to deny the claim. The Federal Judge ruled that Metlife abused their discretion and reversed the decision. In this video, attorneys Victor Pena and Gregory Dell discuss the courts findings and offer some tips as to how to strengthen a cardiac related long term disability claim.
Metlife Denial of Long Term Disability Benefits For Heart Disease Claimant is Reversed

Resolved Cases:
Following an appeal submitted by Attorney Stephen Jessup, Cigna overturns its denial of long term disability to insured with severe vision problems.
Cigna Reinstates Disability Benefits to Project Manager on Appeal

The case of Dawna Lane v. Prudential Insurance Company is limited to a discussion by the Utah Federal District Court about whether or not Plaintiff’s ERISA lawsuit for long term disability benefits should be dismissed on the grounds of judicial estoppel. Although a reference is made to her suffering from “severe psychological conditions,” there is no discussion of her actual disability or conditions of employment.
Continue Reading Court Dismisses Plaintiff’s Disability Claim Against Prudential

Resolved Cases:
LTD Claim Approved by Lincoln for Former Biomet, Inc. Employee suffering from Meniere’s Disease
Project Manager for Biomet, Inc. gets LTD Claim approved after Attorney Alexander Palamara appeals to Lincoln Financial.

Disability Insurance News:
California Court Reverses Sunlife Disability Denial for Woman with Fibromyalgia
In this video, disability insurance attorneys Rachel Alters and Gregory Dell discuss a California Federal Court decision in which a Sunlife disability insurance denial was reversed.

Disability Insurance News:
New Department of Labor Regulations for ERISA Disability Claims
The Department of Labor’s changes to regulations regarding ERISA Disability Claims take effect April 1, 2018.

Resolved Cases:
After appeal filed by Attorney Jay Symonds, Sun Life overturned its previous denial of long term disability benefits for Florida ICU Nurse
Disabled Nurse that was denied LTD benefits under Any Occupation definition by Sun Life is on claim after Dell & Schaefer Appeal.

Disability Insurance News:
Is the Hartford Disability Purchase of Aetna Bad for Aetna LTD Policy Holders?
In this video nationwide long term disability insurance attorneys Gregory Dell and Stephen Jessup discuss what impact they believe this sale will have on Aetna long term disability policy holders.

Resolved Cases:
Disabled Vessel Captain for Marine Services Corporation Wins Long-term Disability Appeal With CIGNA
Congestive heart failure, peripheral artery disease, uncontrolled hypertension, uncontrolled diabetes type 2, bilateral lower extremity neuropathy and other health issues had taken their toll on Chance, causing him to file for disability through his employer’s long-term disability plan with CIGNA.

Resolved Cases:
Standard Overturns Decision to Deny Disabled Project Manager Long-term Disability Insurance Benefits After First Appeal
Standard Terminates Long-term Disability Claim After 24 Months Claiming that the Disability was Due, In Part, to a Mental Disorder.

In Vicki Young v. Sun Life and Health Insurance Company, plaintiff Young, a mortgage broker, was initially granted disability benefits in September 2010 based on her diagnosis of fibromyalgia. The initial two years of her disability were based on her inability to perform the essentially duties of her own occupation.

After two years, Sun Life continued her long term disability (LTD) benefits on the grounds that she did not have the ability to perform the job duties of any occupation for which she was qualified. Suddenly, in 2015, Sun Life terminated her benefits, stating she was no longer disabled under the “any occupation” standard. Young’s administrative appeal was denied and she filed this ERISA lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California.
Continue Reading Court Reinstates Disability Benefits Erroneously Terminated by Sun Life