United States Eighth Circuit

Summary judgment in favor of a plan administrator in a denial of benefits action under ERISA on the grounds that claimant failed to exhaust available contractual remedies is affirmed over claims that notice of a contractual review procedure was insufficient and that contract language made further review optional rather than mandatory, thus, eliminating any requirement for exhaustion prior to suit.

Appellate Information

• Decided 05/17/2006
• Published 05/17/2006

Judges

• MELLOY, Circuit Judge., Before MURPHY, MELLOY, and GRUENDER, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Eighth Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Kay Nord Hunt, argued, Minneapolis, Minnesota (Allen R. Desmond, Minneapolis, Minnesota, on the brief), for appellant.


• For Appellees:
  
• Natalie Wyatt-Brown, argued, Minneapolis, Minnesota (Ashley B. Abel and Robert M. Wood, Greenville, South Carolina, on the brief), for appellee.