Phil Tatlow and Jeffrey Herman received a very favorable ruling on May 20, 2013 from The Honorable Jean C. Hamilton. The case is styled Touhey v. Hartford Life and Accident Insurance Company. A full copy of the memorandum and order can be reviewed by clicking on the case name above. Mr. Touhey applied for long term disabilty benefits when he could no longer perform his job due to depression and anxiety. Despite the fact that his treating physician was supportive of his claim, The Hartford denied the claim. An appeal was filed and, again, The Hartford denied the claim. Therefore, Touhey filed his claim in federal court in 2010. The court determined that The Hartford used the wrong policy in denying the claim and remanded the case back to the plan administrator for another review. After review, the plan, once again, denied the claim and the case ended up back in court. Both parties filed Motions for Summary Judgment, and Judge Hamilton granted Mr. Touhey's motion, Judge Hamilton analyzed Hartford's review process and held that "Hartford did not engage in a principled reasoning process, either initially or on remand, or reach a reasonable result, but rather, abused its discretion in the handling of plaintiff's claim. Judge Hamilton awarded long term disability benefits for two years and also allowed our firm to submit a motion requesting attorneys' fees and costs. We are thrilled with the result after a long, hard-fought battle.
Long Term Disability Benefits Approved (Award amount pending)