Metropolitan Life Insurance Company v. Bell

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT WESTERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, Report and Recommendation Plaintiff, 19-CV-1310 (LJV) v. Deborah Bell et al., Defendants. I. INTRODUCTION George Vick Bell Sr. was a retired automotive worker who died in 2018 with payable life insurance benefits totaling just under $60,000. When George’s wife Deborah Bell filed a claim for his benefits, his daughters—defendants Ryanelle T. Fuqua1 and Gina G. Bell—soon became entangled with Deborah in a dispute over which of several beneficiary designation forms was in effect. Facing the prospect of…