Linda Swerhun v. The Guardian Life Ins. Co. Of America

TJOFLAT, Chief Judge:

This case involves allegations of breach of contract and bad faith denial of claims for benefits under an employee benefit plan as defined by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, 29 U.S.C. §§ 1001-1461 (1988) (ERISA). We affirm the district court’s dismissal of this case on ERISA preemption grounds.

I

The facts of this case are not in dispute. On May 1, 1989, appellant Linda Swerhun applied for health insurance with The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America (Guardian) through her employer’s group health insurance plan. Guardian approved Swerhun's…