Insurance & ERISA Litigation Blog
Tenth Circuit Finds that Policy Terms in an ERISA Plan Did Not Unequivocally Grant an ERISA Administrator Discretion to Interpret Plan Terms, Applies De Novo Review
Insurance companies acting as ERISA plan administrators often are guilty of abusing their discretion to interpret policy language related to the level of benefits payable to a claimant under a long-term disability (“LTD”) policy in a manner most beneficial to them,...
“Own Occupation” Duties in a Long-Term Disability Policy Governed by ERISA: Does a Court Favor Those Listed in the Description of One’s Actual Job, or Those Performed in the National Economy?
“Own Occupation” Duties in a Long-Term Disability Policy Governed by ERISA: Does a Court Favor Those Listed in the Description of One’s Actual Job, or Those Performed in the National Economy? Sometimes a legal dispute comes down to the simple interpretation of the...
Ten Things to Consider and Look For in Your ERISA Life and/or Accidental Death and Dismemberment (AD&D) Insurance Plans When You Select Benefits or File a Claim
1. Obtain a full copy of your plan. The full plan will not typically be a benefit summary or a print-out from a website. It will be fairly long and many definitions and it will recite your ERISA plan terms, policies and procedures for filing a life insurance or...
Ten Things to Consider and Look For in Your ERISA Short-Term and Long-Term Disability Plans When Selecting Benefits or You Want to File a Claim
1. Obtain a full copy of your plan and administrative record. The full plan will not typically be a benefit summary or a print-out from a website. It will be fairly long and many definitions and it will recite your ERISA plan terms, policies and procedures for filing...
Robert J. McKennon Recognized as 2019 “Super Lawyer – Insurance Coverage”
McKennon Law Group PC is proud to announce that its founding shareholder Robert J. McKennon has been recognized as one of Southern California’s “Super Lawyers” and appears in the 2019 edition of Southern California Super Lawyers magazine published in January 2019. Mr....
USA Today Publishes Article—Why millennials should consider disability insurance
On January 29, 2019, USA Today published an article, “Why millennials should consider disability insurance,” by Robert Powell. The article argues for the importance of purchasing disability insurance at a young age, since most insureds are left with the financial...
Breach of Fiduciary Duty under ERISA: Ninth Circuit Clarifies That Mere Disclosure of Plan Documents Is Insufficient “Actual Knowledge” to Trigger Statute of Limitations
In pension and savings plan cases, it can often take several years before an employee realizes that there has been a breach of fiduciary duty. Typically, an employee’s financial loss triggers an investigation that later reveals the facts of the breach. But how long...
Court Says the Development of a Disabling Condition after Surgery for an Unrelated Condition Does Not Preclude Recovery of ERISA Disability Benefits under Pre-Existing Condition Exclusion
Insurance companies often seek to exclude insureds from coverage through their long-term disability (“LTD”) plans by asserting the pre-existing condition exclusion. If an applicant for LTD benefits has a non-disabling condition or becomes disabled as a result of a...
Discovery Disputes in ERISA Breach of Fiduciary Duty Cases: Do the Usual Limitations Apply?
Discovery Disputes in ERISA Breach of Fiduciary Duty Cases: Do the Usual Limitations Apply? The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (“ERISA”) manages many of the benefits people receive from their employers. These benefits include short-term and long-term...
If You Must Miss Work Two Days a Month Due to a Disabling Condition, Are You Precluded from Working in Any Occupation Under a LTD Policy?
Facing a long-term disability (“LTD”) claim, ERISA plan participants under LTD policies can count on the fact that insurance companies will search for ways to escape payment of the monthly LTD benefits they promised their insureds. These insurers often point out that...
