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Ortiz Law Firm | National Disability Law Firm
Ortiz Law Firm is dedicated to helping people recover the disability benefits they deserve. We handle group Long Term Disability (LTD) claims, individual disability insurance policy claims, ERISA disability claims, and Social Security Disability claims.
This is an update to the previous District Court Decision in Cheney v. Standard. Here, the U.S. Court of Appeals reversed the lower court decision in favor of the Plaintiff and rules in favor of the insurance company.
Charlie Craig Hounihan (“Hounihan”) was a technician who was employed by Proctor and Gamble (“P&G”) on the Bounty paper towel line at a plant in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. Through his employment with P&G, Hounihan was covered under both short-term and long-term disability benefit plans with Aetna. The Proctor & Gamble Disability …
In this case, Gary Carty (“Carty”) worked as a manager of Eastman Chemical Company’s (“Eastman”) information technology department. Gary held a policy under the Eastman Chemical Company Welfare Benefit Program which Metropolitan Life Insurance Company (“MetLife”) administered. Under the policy provisions, a claimant is considered disabled if he …
In this case, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California ruled in favor of Plaintiff Sarabjit Sangha and ruled against Cigna Life Insurance Company of New York. Specifically, the Plaintiff appealed Cigna’s denial of her long-term disability (“LTD”) benefits. After reviewing briefs submitted by both parties, the Judge overturned …
Because the record establishes that LINA acted arbitrarily and capriciously in denying Calhoun long-term disability benefits, the Sixth Circuit REVERSED the district court’s judgment and REMANDED this case to the district court.
Bruce Tracia (“Tracia”) was an employee of Comcast Cable Communication Management, LLC (“Comcast”) and held the job of a business account executive. He had previously worked as a line technician and several other positions while working for Comcast. Through his employment with Comcast, Tracia was covered by a Group Disability Income Policy. Liberty …
In the instant case, Julissa Bradshaw (“Bradshaw”) was a medical biller for Pyramid Healthcare Solutions, Inc. (“Pyramid”). She held a policy through Reliance Standard Life Insurance Company (“Reliance Standard”) for both short-term and long-term disability coverage. Her coverage under this policy began on May 1, 2013. When Bradshaw was hired by …
In this case, the court found that the evidence MetLife received in 2014, and in 2015 after Black appealed MetLife’s initial denial, showed that Black’s physical condition had in fact improved sufficiently to allow her to perform sedentary work
The Court found that ERISA preempts Ms. Bey’s state law claims and that Reliance is entitled to summary judgment in its favor in all respects. Given the thorough review by an independent physician, the Court did not conclude that Reliance acted arbitrarily or capriciously.
In this case, Tiffany Ausler (“Ausler”) worked as a software engineer for Boeing Corporation (“Boeing”). Because she was a Boeing employee, Ausler was covered under both short-term and long-term disability compensation plans where Aetna Life Insurance Company (“Aetna”) was the administrator of the plans. The plan brochure explains that an employee …
Charles Buford Arning (“Arning”) was employed full-time by ECMD, Inc. as the President of the Arndt & Herman Building Products Division. Aetna Life Insurance Company (“Aetna”) administered a Long-Term Disability Executives Plan provided to ECMD employees. The Plan’s language provides: “You will be considered disabled while covered under …
In this case, Andrew Scott (“Scott”) was an orthopedic surgeon focusing on sports medicine. His employer had a long-term disability (LTD) plan through Union Security Insurance Company (“Union”). The LTD plan defined “disability” as follows: In October 2012, the Plaintiff had surgery for a rotator cuff injury. As a result, he stopped …
Susan Usztics (“Usztics”) was employed as a program manager for MSX International, Inc. Through her employment, she held a short-term disability benefits policy which was administered by Unum Life Insurance Company of America (“Unum”). Her last day of work was February 4, 2014, following which she applied for short-term disability benefits …
In Zerangue v. Lincoln National, Lena Zerangue (“Zerangue”) filed an ERISA suit against The Lincoln National Life Insurance Company (“Lincoln”) in an attempt to recover long-term disability benefits that she believed she should receive. Because of her employment with Alliance Benefit Partners, Zerangue held policy coverage under both short-term and …
In this case, Christopher Draper (“Draper”) worked as a truck driver/courier for Federal Express Corporation (“Fed Ex”). His job duties included doing things such as “maneuvering packages of any weight above 75 lbs. with appropriate equipment and/or assistance from another person.” This claim arose from a denial of Draper’s short-term disability …
In Burkhead v. Life Insurance Company of North America, the plaintiff filed for short and long-term disability benefits from Life Insurance Company of North America (LINA), the insurer of her ERISA governed plan. In the District Court’s Opinion, the court held that LINA abused its discretion in denying plaintiff benefits under the “own occupation” …
Anthony Bowman (“Bowman”) was employed as a Maintenance Mechanic which required the ability to do heavy lifting between fifty and sixty pounds. Injuries throughout his life caused him to have a number of surgeries and resulted in chronic neck and back pain. Bowman also had issues with a sleep disorder and pain medication, which led …
This case involves James Ampe (“Ampe”), a Senior Development and Test Engineer employed by MIT Lincoln Laboratories (“MIT”). Ampe’s job duties included not only traditional electrical engineer work, but also regular client interactions. He was employed by the company from 2008 to January 26, 2015. Around August 2011, Ampe injured himself when he …
In this case, Amanda Foster (“Foster”) worked as an attorney for Sullivan, Stolier & Knight (“Sullivan”) in New Orleans. Her duties involved being able to “review and draft leases and agreements; research and advise clients regarding government laws and regulations; represent clients in administrative appeals; [and] draft compliance plans.” …
Aetna’s decision to deny the plaintiff benefits was unsupported by substantial evidence and was, thereby arbitrary and capricious. Aetna gave great weight to the opinions of its own experts and afforded little, to no, weight to the plaintiff’s own physicians. Under the circumstances, the plaintiff’s physicians—who had been treating him for several …
The Court determined that Unum came to a reasonable decision after a principled decision-making process. Although the Court may have reached a different conclusion independently, Unum did not abuse its discretion in denying Allen’s claim for long-term disability benefits.