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This month’s Friday Five explores recent decisions that range from the effect on disability benefits when medical records are not provided after two appeals, to a case that examines how an award of death benefits is determined, to a finding that an insurer’s decision to terminate benefits was not...

​A perennial debate exists in the white-collar space: do the benefits of self-disclosure outweigh the risks associated with providing the government with a road map to the company’s purported violation? Consistently, the Department of Justice, among other government agencies, has answered that...

This month’s Friday Five explores decisions regarding the timeliness of appeals, the support necessary to sustain an LTD termination decision, a court’s discretion to credit and discredit expert opinions, the circumstances under which an insured may be required to prove they were prejudiced by the...

This month’s Friday Five addresses two cases involving disability claims that touch on Covid-19, a Circuit Court ruling for an insurer, a district court ruling that a 20-year-old regulatory settlement precluded an insurer from relying on the opinions of physicians it hired, and a claim for breach of...

This month’s Friday Five covers cases relating to what constitutes a fiduciary function, a finding of disability despite working full-time, an enforcement of suit limitation clause, the circumstances under which reinstatement is an appropriate remedy, and ERISA preemption. The Saul Ewing LLP...

This month’s Friday Five covers cases relating to a plaintiff’s attempts to seal a complaint seeking disability benefits, an administrator’s uncommunicated decision to discontinue its investigation into certain medical conditions, an administrator’s loss of the deferential standard of review for...

This month’s Friday Five explores two recent decisions that discuss limitations on benefits when both physical disability and disability arising from mental illness are alleged, whether remand of a claim by the court constitutes a new appeal or a continuation of the previous appeal, whether an order...

This month’s Friday Five explores recent decisions that reflect the precise nature of rules and definitions in the context of ERISA claims. For example, effective dates of CFR code provisions and contractually defined limitation periods can draw specific points on the timeline of a case. Similarly...

On March 7, 2023 the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (the “HUD”) Secretary, Marcia L. Fudge, issued a public memorandum (the “Memo”) expressing concern over a lack of transparency in fees charged to residential tenants. The Memo calls on housing providers and state and local...

On February 28, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) issued a Request for Information (“RFI”) seeking public comment on background screening issues affecting rental housing applicants and tenants in the United States. The 10-page RFI, which the...

This month's Friday Five covers cases relating to issue preclusion, coverage where the policy terms are inconsistent with the parties’ behavior, application of the abuse of discretion standard of review, applicability of a waiver of premium provision and compliance with a mandatory appeals process...

​In Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection v. Townstone Financial, Inc ., the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) brought suit against Townstone, a mortgage broker/lender, and its co-founder and chief executive, Barry Sturner (“Sturner”) for alleged violations of the Equal Credit...

This month’s Friday Five covers cases relating to potential impacts of COVID-19, full and fair review of the claim file, an attempt to use an insurer’s internal policy against itself, and a “second bite at the apple” by amending a complaint for denial of benefits to include a claim for breach of...

This month’s Friday Five covers cases relating to discovery in ERISA benefits cases, an appellate court strictly interpreting ERISA regulatory deadlines, a district court authorizing an ERISA breach of fiduciary duty claim based on alleged misrepresentations from an employer, another district court...

On December 15, 2022, the National Labor Relations Board’s Los Angeles regional office determined that an unfair labor practice charge (ULP) alleging that student-athletes should be classified as employees has “merit.” The National College Players Association filed the ULP in February 2022 against...

As always, the new year also brings many new employment laws for California employers. Except as indicated below, they become effective January 1, 2023. The following is a summary of state laws only. Employers need to remember that local jurisdictions frequently have higher requirements that must be...

This month’s Friday Five explores recent decisions that illustrate the importance of the administrative record built by a claims administrator, and the impact that the depth and thoroughness of the record will have on litigation over claims decisions. Whether reviewing claims under the de novo...