What to Expect in a Unum Disability Benefit Denial Lawsuit

You may feel as if the Appeal review conducted by Unum was a sham and you never had a chance to have your Unum disability denial reversed. Your feeling of being called a liar by Unum and questioning if it is even worth filing a Unum disability lawsuit is exactly Unum’s plan. The sad truth is that the law governing long term disability insurance claims favors disability insurance companies and therefore a high percentage of Unum disability appeal denials are upheld. Unum hopes that you will just go away and that they can strong arm you to return to work out of financial necessity. The good news is that with a strong legal strategy your Unum disability benefit lawsuit can result in a recovery of your disability benefits.

What Should You Expect In A Unum Disability Lawsuit?

Through our experience of having helped thousands of Unum disability insurance claimants nationwide, we would like the opportunity to help you win your Unum disability benefit lawsuit. In order to help you understand what to expect in a Unum disability lawsuit, Attorneys Gregory Dell and Alex Palamara have prepared the Unum disability lawsuit video below. We encourage you to contact any of our disability insurance lawyers for a free immediate review of your Unum disability claim denial.

When Can A Unum Disability Lawsuit Be Filed?

The answer to this question depends on whether you have a claim that is governed by The Employee Retirement Income Security Act, also known as (ERISA). If you have a Unum disability claim that was provided to you as an employee benefit, then your claim is almost always governed by ERISA. An ERISA disability lawsuit cannot be filed against Unum until you have received a denial of the appeal you submitted to Unum.

An ERISA lawsuit usually must be filed within either 3 years of your date of disability or the date of the final disability denial decision. If Unum fails to make a timely decision on your appeal, you can file suit without having to wait for Unum’s appeal decision. The law governing time periods to file lawsuits is known as the Statute of Limitations and it is an area of law that is regularly changing and not consistent from state to state. In a Non-ERISA disability benefit claim denial an appeal is usually not required by Unum and most lawsuits can be filed 90 days after proof of loss is due but no later than 3 years after the date of denial. In our video below, disability attorneys Stephen Jessup and Gregory Dell answer the question of whether you can sue Unum:

The period of time in which a lawsuit must be filed can be a complicated analysis determined by a combination of the policy language and the law of the state in which the person was denied. The best thing to do in many cases to avoid a statutory problem is to file a lawsuit as soon as reasonably possible.

Our Clients Have Recovered UNUM Disability Benefits in 99% of our Unum Disability Lawsuits

As much as we love to beat up Unum for their wrongful disability claim denials, we know how to set our egos aside. Our goal for every client is to try to resolve their Unum claim in the most expedient and efficient manner possible. Upon review of your disability denial letter from Unum we can immediately let you know if you have a claim that we think we can help you with. We look forward to speaking with you to discuss your options against Unum.

What Are the Most Challenging Issues in a Unum Disability Lawsuit?

The most challenging aspect of any disability lawsuit is the fact that your Unum disability benefit denial is likely governed by ERISA, a pro-insurance company federal law that governs almost all employer-provided disability policies. ERISA was designed so that insurance companies could offer affordable benefits to employees and in return have limited lawsuit expenses if a disability claim is denied. If your disability policy was not provided by your employer, then you will not have to worry about the ERISA lawsuit limitations. In our video below, disability attorneys Stephen Jessup and Gregory Dell discuss the reasons why ERISA makes disability lawsuits against a company like Unum challenging.

Five Reasons ERISA Disability Laws Favor Unum 

1. No jury trials are permitted;
2. No punitive damages;
3. Very limited discovery;
4. The Judge usually must apply a standard of review that defers to the insurance company’s conclusion that you are not disabled;
5. The Judge can remand the case back to Unum for any additional chance to review the claim and deny it again;

How Much Does Our Firm Charge to Handle a Unum Disability Lawsuit?

The proper preparation of a lawsuit against Unum takes a lot of legal time and our law firm is selective in the type and quantity of cases we accept. Providing the highest level of legal work and personal attention to your claim is a fundamental mode of operation for every lawyer in our firm. We are not high volume social security lawyers that are trying to handle disability insurance claims against Unum.

We have been handling claims against Unum for over 30 years. We only handle Unum disability lawsuits on a contingency fee basis. This means that we charge you a percentage of the disability benefits that we recover on your behalf. If we are not successful at recovering any disability benefits for you, then you do not owe us any attorney fees or cost for the work that we have done on your behalf.

More than 90% of the disability lawsuits that we have handled against Unum have resolved in a one-time lump sum settlement. We encourage you to review some of our Unum resolved case summaries to learn more about our experience. Most of our Unum disability lawsuit settlements have confidentiality provisions which limit our ability to discuss specific details about the cases.

A Unum Disability Lawsuit Story

In our video below, disability insurance attorneys Gregory Dell & Rachel Alters discuss how a Washington Court ordered Unum Life to award disability benefits to the Plaintiff, finding he was unable to work in his own occupation as a Web Content Specialist. The lawsuit revolves around how Unum wrongfully relied only on paper reviews to deny long term disability benefits, as opposed to relying on the claimant’s doctors to approve disability benefits.

Collecting Unum Disability Benefits Is A Reality

Through our 30+ years of experience suing Unum and our daily work on behalf of Unum disability claimants nationwide, we have seen and we are constantly aware of every claims handling technique used by Unum. We are one of the few law firms in the entire country that has the experience of going through a jury trial and receiving a favorable verdict against Unum. As a result of our years of battling Unum we have established a strong reputation and a unique litigation technique that allows us to cut through the traditional 18 to 24 month delay in resolving a Unum disability lawsuit.

We encourage you to contact any of our disability insurance lawyers to discuss some strategies for a possible resolution of your Unum disability denial. It is incredible and sad how many people we see give up the fight following a Unum claim denial as they don’t want to deal with Unum. Our lawyers make the lawsuit process as simple as possible for claimants by requiring almost no time or effort by the claimant to pursue a Unum lawsuit. Any of our disability lawyers are available for an immediate free phone consultation to discuss your Unum claim denial.

What are the Top 10 Reasons for Unum Disability Denials?

1. Unum denied the claim based on objective medical evidence rather than medical records
2. Unum’s in-house doctor denied the disability claim
3. With no exam a third party medical company denied a Unum claim
4. With functional limitations Unum denied a disability claim because claimant has the ability to perform sedentary occupation
5. After a compulsory medical exam a doctor hired by Unum denied the disability claim
6. Unum denied the claim based on a vocational consultant evaluation of employability in another occupation
7. Unum ignored claimant’s treating doctor’s opinion of limited work restrictions and denied claim
8. Based on video surveillance Unum denied disability claim
9. My definition of disability changed from own occupation to any occupation and Unum denied my disability claim
10. Unum based your denial on a mental disability and not a physical disability and therefore limited your benefits to 24 months

How Do You Fight Unum?

According to ERISA regulations, it is necessary to submit an administrative appeal to challenge UNUM’s denial before proceeding with a lawsuit. The appeal should include all relevant legal and medical documentation to support the request for overturning the denial. Our experienced legal team will ensure you have the strongest appeal possible.

If the administrative appeal is unsuccessful, you can file a lawsuit against UNUM. ERISA allows for lawsuits to challenge the denial of long-term disability benefits. The goal of the lawsuit will be to collect unpaid benefits, as well as penalties and attorney’s fees if applicable.