
New York City Pension Disability Lawyer
Any dispute involving pension or disability benefits implicates various laws at the state and federal level. One of the most important is the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, called ERISA. This federal law applies to pension and employer-sponsored disability benefits, such as short-term or long-term disability coverage. As an example, you might have short-term or long-term insurance through a private insurance carrier as a job benefit. ERISA applies to you.
ERISA governs litigation disputes, granting important rights to employees. Call Carey & Associates, P.C. if you have a legal dispute involving disability benefits. Our firm can meet in a confidential consultation to review your claim and other important matters.
Disability Cases & Worker Rights
Most people are aware of disability benefits through the Social Security Administration, which they pay with each pay period. However, many workers are provided short-term or long-term disability coverage as a benefit from their employer.
ERISA covers these employer-sponsored plans, and the provides important rights, including the following:
- You have a right to an appeal. Your claim for benefits might be denied, or the insurance carrier might terminate benefits. You have the right to appeal this denial under ERISA. You have 180 days from the date of the denial to file your appeal. ERISA also requires that a carrier make a decision on an appeal within 45 or 90 days.
- You have the right to sue in federal court. Your case might not end, even if you lose an appeal. ERISA gives workers a right to file a case in federal court. Your case should be decided by a neutral federal judge, which provides protection to workers.
- You are protected against retaliation. An employer cannot retaliate against you for trying to enforce your ERISA rights. Consequently, you cannot face retaliation for filing a claim or appealing a denial.
You should meet with an experienced disability litigation attorney with our firm to discuss any of these issues.
Cases We Have Handled
At Carey & Associates, P.C., our team has helped workers with claims against most of the largest insurance carriers. We have handled cases for:
- Lou Gehrig’s Disease
- Parkinson’s Disease
- Early-onset Alzheimer’s
- Multiple Sclerosis
- Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
- Fibromyalgia
- Many more
Insurance carriers deny claims for many reasons, including by arguing the policy does not cover your disability or illness or that you are not so disabled that you cannot work. They might also rashly allege you have hidden information or committed fraud in the application process.
How to Appeal a Denial
Employees are naturally frustrated when an insurer denies them short-term or long-term disability benefits. You have paid premiums for years, only to receive a denial when you need the benefits the most.
We help clients by:
- Fully examining the reasons for the denial. For example, you might not have provided sufficient documentation that you have a medical condition, or the insurer denies your condition is covered by the policy.
- Analyzing the insurance plan. The written plan is the agreement between you and the insurance carrier. These carriers have an incentive to read their own documents narrowly, which helps them deny benefit claims. We take a fresh look at the contractual language to see if you are covered.
- Gathering supporting documentation. We can help collect up-to-date medical information in support of your claim. If the dispute is mostly legal and involves how to interpret a contract, we will gather supporting legal authority for our position.
- Submitting an appeal. After preparing the record, we can submit a written administrative appeal.
- Reviewing next steps. Ideally, the insurance carrier will approve benefits after receiving additional information. However, they might persist in denying a claim, in which case we can analyze if it’s time to file a lawsuit in federal court.
Our firm is experienced in the entire appeal process, including how to handle an appeal in federal court. We understand the specific burdens of proof that apply to these cases and use our knowledge to our clients’ benefit. ERISA is notoriously complex, with even Supreme Court Justices decrying the complexity of the law. Hire the right attorney who can use ERISA to help you.
Do You Have Questions? Call Carey & Associates, P.C.
Our legal team has won short-term and long-term benefits for workers who are struggling with serious illnesses or injuries. We take pride in getting clients the benefits they always thought they were entitled to. Reach out and connect with a member of our team at (203) 814-1344 In a private consultation, we can discuss your disabilities, as well as how they have impacted your job.
Practice Areas
- Employment Counseling
- Pregnancy Discrimination
- Disability Discrimination
- Age Discrimination
- Severance Negotiations
- Sexual Harassment & Gender Discrimination
- Connecticut Executive Compensation Lawyers
- Racial Discrimination
- Wage and Overtime Claims
- Sexual Orientation and Transgender (LGBTQ)
- Whistleblower Protection
- Family Medical Leave Act
- Pension and Disability Benefits Litigation
- Employment Defamation
- Religious Discrimination
- Noncompetition and Nonsolicitation Agreements
- Wrongful Termination
- Retaliation Discrimination
Client Testimonials
Mark and his team at Carey & Associates are incredibly knowledgeable about Employment Law and have walked me through every step of the way. Their approach and guidance has been extremely effective in dealing with my case. They instill a sense of confidence by laying out the facts, caselaw, and risk assessment to help make well informed decisions. I would highly recommend them to anyone looking for an Employment Attorney.
J.K.
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