Collier v. Lincoln Life Assurance Co. of Bos., No. 21-55465, __ F.4th __, 2022 WL 17087828 (9th Cir. Nov. 21, 2022) (Before Circuit Judges Paez and Watford, and District Judge Richard D. Bennett)
This week’s notable decision is a Kantor & Kantor victory in the Ninth Circuit addressing what arguments ERISA plan administrators and
Stewart v. Hartford Life & Accident Ins. Co., No. 21-11919, __ F.4th __, 2022 WL 3221296 (11th Cir. Aug. 10, 2022) (Before Circuit Judges Newsom, Tjoflat, and Hull).
Courts typically review ERISA benefit decisions under one of two standards: either de novo, i.e., with no deference to the benefit claim administrator, or for
Williams v. Unum Life Ins. Co. of Am., No. 20-1694, __ F.4th __, 2021 WL 3729660 (8th Cir. Aug. 24, 2021) (Before Circuit Judges Smith, Arnold, and Stras).
Ever since the Supreme Court’s 1989 decision in Firestone Tire & Rubber v. Bruch, ERISA-governed benefit plans and their insurers have sought to grant themselves discretionary authority in order to ensure a favorable standard of review in court.