UNUM Life Insurance Company of America ("UNUM") appeals the district court's award of long-term disability benefits to Pamela Ray ("Ray") pursuant to her claim under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act ("ERISA"), 29 U.S.C. § 1132. UNUM presents five arguments on appeal, which dispute: (1) the district court's refusal to consider evidence beyond the claim record that was closed in 1997

Nancy Kecso sued her employer, Meredith Corporation, seeking to overturn Meredith's decision to discontinue the long-term disability benefits that she had been receiving after being diagnosed with a brain tumor. On cross-motions for summary judgment, the district court denied Meredith's summary judgment motion but granted Kecso's and subsequently awarded her a money judgment. Meredith appea

Bonnie Meraou appeals the district court's January 20, 2006, judgment affirming the decision by the Administrative Committee of The Williams Company ("TWC") Long-Term Disability Plan (the "Plan") terminating Ms. Meraou's long-term-disability (LTD) benefits under the Plan. We exercise jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291, and affirm.

I. Background

Ms. Meraou was hired by TWC in 1987

Appellant Paul Miller appeals the District Court's dismissal of his complaint under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6). The focus of Miller's appeal is the accrual date of his cause of action to recover benefits under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act ("ERISA"). We must determine whether his cause of action accrued in 1987, when he first began receiving a miscalculated ben

This matter comes on before the court on an appeal by Sandra Register, Grace B. Merchant, Susan L. Wilson, Kristina Beckman, John J. Daggett, and Richard Rhoades, ("appellants"), from the district court's order entered on November 21, 2005, granting PNC Financial Services Group, Inc., PNC Bank, NA, Pension Committee of PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. Pension Plan, and PNC Financial S

Several participants in the Blandin Paper Company Employees' Retirement Plan ("the Plan") sued Blandin Paper Company and the Plan for improperly calculating lump sum benefits in violation of ERISA. 29 U.S.C. § 1132(a)(1)(B). The parties filed cross-motions for summary judgment, and the district court granted summary judgment in favor of Blandin and the Plan. The participants appeal, and we

The Chicago District Council of Carpenters Welfare Fund ("Carpenters") sued Caremark, Inc. and its parent company Caremark Rx, Inc. (collectively "Caremark") for breach of fiduciary duties under 29 U.S.C. § 1106(b) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 ("ERISA").1 The district court determined that Caremark was not an ERISA fiduciary and therefore granted Caremark's motio

This is an appeal from a preliminary injunction restraining efforts by Detroit Diesel Corporation to require retired employees to make premium contributions in order to maintain their current health care coverage. Although the district court's reasoning is flawed, the award of preliminary injunctive relief has not been shown to be an abuse of discretion. For the reasons that follow, the prel

UnknownAlthough legal remedies exist for the alleged wrongs committed by Electronic Data Systems ("EDS") and its associated defendants for allegedly mismanaging the company's 401(k) Retirement Plan, the Rule 23(b)(1) or (b)(2) class action certified by the district court is not among them. The district court erroneously interpreted the impact, inter alia, of intraclass conflicts and fact-

In April 1996, Dr. Robert Renfro began working for Mobil Oil Corporation as a contract physician at the Beaumont, Texas, oil refinery. In the fall of 2000, Dr. Renfro sought a full-time, salaried position as a staff physician with ExxonMobil Corporation. Dr. Renfro received a letter confirming his appointment on January 15, 2001, began work on February 19, was injured in a car accident on Febru

Since the Supreme Court's decision in Firestone Tire and Rubber Co. v. Bruch, 489 U.S. 101 (1989), federal courts have reviewed an ERISA health plan's denial of benefits for arbitrariness and capriciousness, so long as the plan explicitly grants discretionary authority to an administrator or other fiduciary to render benefit decisions. Now we are called upon to decide whether a fiduciary's deci

The U.S. Department of Labor today announced a settlement agreement with former Enron executive Jeffrey K. Skilling resolving the department's action against him. Under the agreement, Skilling will drop his opposition to a previous $85 million settlement, waive his right to benefits from Enron's pension plans and be permanently barred from serving in a fiduciary capacity to any employee benefit

Dora McNeil appeals the district court's adverse judgment in her Employment Retirement Security Act (ERISA) action against her former employer, Jose E. Abiseid, M.D., P.A. (Abiseid). In her lawsuit, McNeil challenged the calculation of accrued pension benefits to which she was entitled under a Defined Benefit Plan and Trust (Plan) following her termination. The case was submitted below on

James Northcutt and Lewis Smith brought this action seeking pension plan benefits withheld from them by their employer, General Motors Corporation ("GM"). GM had suspended the payment of these benefits and was treating the amount otherwise due to the plaintiffs each month as reimbursement for past disability and pension plan overpayments. Mr. Northcutt and Mr. Smith claim that § 502 of th

The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, 29 U.S.C. § 1001, can be a fruitless and thorny ground for plaintiffs, and many seek to avoid it entirely by bringing their insurance claims under state law. The Supreme Court has increasingly circumscribed such state-law claims, however, finding the pre-emptive sweep of ERISA to be so "extraordinary" that it bars all claims of close relation

This case arises out of a dispute over whether employees divested in connection with the merger between Mobil Corporation and Exxon Corporation are entitled to severance benefits. In preparation for the merger, Mobil implemented an Enhanced Change-in-Control Retention / Severance Plan (the "CIC Plan").

Plaintiffs Joe A. Hooven, et al., are former Mobil Corporation employees whose

Considering retirement, Qwest Communications employee Duane Christensen requested and received several estimates of his expected pension benefit from the Qwest Pension Plan ("the Plan"). Christensen retired, and the Plan conducted a final audit which determined that his benefit under the annuity option he selected would be $1484 per month, rather than the final pre-retirement estimate of $1

After Dr. Joseph Abatie died, his widow - Plaintiff Karla H. Abatie - sought life insurance benefits from Alta Health & Life Insurance Company under an employee welfare benefit plan regulated by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 ("ERISA"). Alta, which was both the administrator and the funding source of the plan, denied benefits. Plaintiff then brought this action. The di

The IBM Personal Pension Plan is a cash-balance defined-benefit plan. It is almost, but not quite, a defined-contribution plan. Although each employee in a defined-contribution plan has a fully funded individual account, the personal account in a cash-balance plan is not separately funded. Instead IBM imputes value to the account in the form of "credits": there are pay credits (set at 5%

The questions presented in this appeal are (1) whether the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended, 29 U.S.C. §§ 1001 et seq. ("ERISA") completely preempts state law claims seeking damages for breach of contract, lost health insurance benefits, failure to notify that an ERISA plan had lapsed and premium payments for losses incurred after the plan lapsed; and (2) whether

Kenneth Chuck appeals the district court's grant of the summary judgment motion put forward by several Hewlett Packard Company defendants (collectively, "HP"). Chuck's principal claim is that the Hewlett Packard Company Deferred Profit-Sharing Retirement Plan (the "Plan"), which is governed by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 ("ERISA"), 29 U.S.C. § 1001 et seq., owes hi

Defendant Jefferson Pilot Financial Insurance Company (Jefferson) appeals from the district court's entry of judgment in favor of plaintiff John DeGrado on his claim under § 502(a)(1)(B) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), 29 U.S.C. § 1132(a)(1)(B), for increased benefits under a long-term disability policy provided by Jefferson to DeGrado's employer. We exercise jurisdictio

Defendant-Appellants U.S. Bancorp and U.S. Bank Long Term Disability Plan, (the "Plan"), successors in interest to First Bank Systems, Inc. and First Bank Systems Long-Term Disability Plan, respectively, appeal from the district court's grant of summary judgment in favor of Plaintiff-Appellee Denise Rekstad on her claim for disability benefits under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act o

Alice Roberts, Kevin Hales, Christy Millsap, and Tim Millsap (collectively Appellees) filed a putative class action in Missouri state court against BJC Health System, doing business as BJC Healthcare; Missouri Baptist Medical Center; Sisters of Mercy Health System; St. John's Mercy Health System, doing business as St. John's Mercy Medical Center; and Reconstructive and Microsurgery Associat

The question presented is whether former utility company employees who took advantage of early retirement programs are entitled by reason of a labor agreement to vested lifetime dental benefits that could not be changed by the company. Such dental benefits are not given to other former employees or to present employees. These benefits are welfare benefit plan benefits under the Employee Retirem