Second Circuit Clarifies ERISA LTD Waiver Protections in Schuyler v. Sun Life 

In a significant victory for individuals with long term disability ("LTD") claims, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in Schuyler v. Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada that ERISA benefit rights cannot be waived through a standard separation agreement unless the waiver is knowing and voluntary. This ruling reinforces ERISA’s protective framework and delivers an important warning for employment attorneys advising clients with disability claims.

Riemer Hess LLC, in partnership with Kantor & Kantor LLP, proudly served as co-counsel for the plaintiff in this pivotal case.

Riemer Hess has over 25 years of experience fighting long term disability insurance companies on behalf of our clients.  We have won long term disability claims, appeals, and litigations with all of the major disability insurance companies.  Through this experience, we've learned the tactics each insurance company uses when evaluating long term disability claims and how to overcome them to secure benefits.

Below you can find more information about our strategies for securing benefits from common disability insurers.  Feel free to ask us about our experience with other insurers if you do not see yours below.  We have dealt with all of the major insurers and many of the lesser-known ones.

Riemer Hess aggressively litigated a hotly contested long term disability lawsuit against Sun Life – ultimately winning over 15 years of unpaid benefits for the Plaintiff, despite Sun Life’s unsuccessful appeals. The judge’s opinion in this case is a major victory for the Plaintiff, as well as future disabled claimants who are victims of insurance company abuse and delay tactics.

On July 24, 2013, Riemer Hess prevailed in a long-standing dispute over attorneys’ fees in Levitian v. Sun Life and Health Insurance Company (U.S.), 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 105686 (S.D.N.Y. July 24, 2013).