United States Fifth Circuit
Schexnayder v. Hartford Life & Accident Ins. Co., 08-30538
In an ERISA action claiming that defendant-insurer wrongly denied plaintiff disability benefits, summary judgment on the merits for plaintiff is affirmed where defendant's decision was procedurally unreasonable because the Social Security Administration (SSA) determined that plaintiff was fully disabled and unable to perform any work, but defendant did not address the SSA award in any of its denial letters. However, the district court's order granting plaintiff attorney's fees is reversed where the legal questions in this case were much closer than the district court credited, and the district court therefore abused its discretion in assessing attorneys' fees against defendant.
Appellate Information
- Decided 03/16/2010
- Published 03/16/2010
Judges
- PRADO, Circuit Judge:, Before JOLLY, PRADO, and SOUTHWICK, Circuit Judges.
Court
- United States Fifth Circuit