Legal Opinion
House v. American United Life Insurance
Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
Decided September 4, 2007No. 06-30168PublishedCited by 38 opinions
1Opinion of the Court
REAVLEY, Circuit Judge:
Walter House sued American United Life Insurance Company (“AUL”) for long-term disability benefits. The district court granted summary judgment by which total disability benefits and a Louisiana state law penalty were awarded to House. We hold that House’s claim comes under an ERISA plan that preempts the state law penalty and that he was only partially disabled.
I. Background
Walter House was a trial attorney and founding partner of his firm, earning approximately $350,000 per year. In October 1999, at age forty-nine, House suffered a heart attack. In that same month,…
2Cases cited27 opinions
- Martin Hansen, Cross-Appellee v. The Continental Insurance Company and Commercial Insurance Company of Newark, New Jersey, Cross-AppellantsCourt of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · 1991
- Custer v. Pan American Life Insurance CompanyCourt of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit · 1993
- Vilma Lissette Vega Jose Vega v. National Life Insurance Services, Inc., Pan-American Life Insurance CompanyCourt of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · 1999
- Kentucky Assn. of Health Plans, Inc. v. MillerSupreme Court of the United States · 2003
- Ellis v. Liberty Life Assurance Co. of BostonCourt of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · 2005
22 more not listed; retrieve them via the Exa API.
3Cited by38 opinions
- Alton Bass v. Stryker CorporationCourt of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · 2012
- Sanders v. Gravel Products, Inc.North Dakota Supreme Court · 2008
- John Clayton v. ConocoPhillips CompanyCourt of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · 2013
- Nichols v. Reliance Standard Life Ins. Co.Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit · 2019
- Bobby P. Kearney, MD, PLLC v. Blue Cross & Blue Shield of North CarolinaDistrict Court, M.D. North Carolina · 2017
33 more not listed; retrieve them via the Exa API.