When a court of law weighs in on a denied disability benefit, it can go either way. This was especially true with a recent Unum disability claim denial in which a woman suddenly lost her benefits after receiving them for nine years. Fortunately, the judge ruled in favor of the…
An Aetna disability policy holder suffering from a brain injury gets her denial overturned on appeal. Aetna claimed our client did not have post-concussive syndrome that’s affected their ability to work. After an appeal filed by Attorneys Dell & Schafer showed a few things that Aetna got wrong, her denial…
Ms. Dana Kysztofiak worked as a Clinical Coordination Manager for HomeCare Maryland LLC. She was a registered nurse who stopped working in 2016 because of pain and other issues related to psoriatic arthritis and fibromyalgia. She claimed disability benefits through an ERISA plan with Boston Mutual Life Insurance Co. beginning…
Disability Insurance Attorneys Dell & Schaefer has handled thousands of Appeals against UNUM. Learn what the most important thing a UNUM policy holder needs to know before filing an appeal. GREGORY DELL: Hi, I’m attorney Greg Dell here with attorney Stephen Jessup. And we want to talk about Unum appeals,…
Fredrick Smith worked as a plant manager for Charles Craft, Inc. in North Carolina. He held that position since 1970, but he was forced to leave by 2013 due to a series of strokes and heart problems. Smith applied for disability benefits with Reliance Standard under his employer’s ERISA plan.…
Melanie Lapidus was employed with BJC Healthcare as the Vice-President of Medical Benefits. In that role, she developed and executed strategic initiatives related to the growth of a managed care provider network. The work was sedentary for the most part, but it also involved brief periods of standing, walking, and…
The Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit issued a decision in June 2019 involving an Illinois woman who was denied long-term (LTD) and short-term disability (STD) benefits from her insurance carrier, United of Omaha Life Insurance Company. The appeal focused on deficiencies in the analysis of both the insurance company and the district court in…
After handling hundreds of long-term disability claims against Reliance Standard, attorneys Greg Dell and Alex Palamara share their expertise and explain the intricacies of filing an ERISA appeal. Dell notes that 99 percent of the denied Reliance Standard disability claims handled by their firm are ERISA appeals, primarily because Reliance…
The case of Smith v. Reliance Standard Life Insurance Company (Reliance) demonstrates the length disability insurance companies will go to avoid paying benefits to claimants. It began in 2013 when Fredrick Smith, who had been plant manager at Charles Craft, Inc. since the 1970s, experienced a series of strokes and…
Gina Pike received long term disability (LTD) benefits for eight years from her disability insurer, Hartford Life and Accident Insurance Company (Hartford) when the company suddenly terminated her benefits. She filed two administrative appeals, but Hartford still denied benefits, so Pike filed this ERISA lawsuit. In Gina Pike v. Hartford…