Short & Long Term Disability Cases We’ve Won for Our Clients Against MetLife

A surgical technician at a large hospital became disabled after chronic struggles with his left knee and lumbar spine pain. After leaving his job, he applied for Long Term Disability benefits and was initially paid for a few months. Suddenly and without warning, Metlife denied ongoing benefits. The man was shocked because his job required him to be on his feet for several hours at a time during surgeries and he wasn’t able to stand for more than a few minutes.

He hired Fields Law to fight this wrongful denial of benefits. Our lawyers put together an appeal with several volumes of medical evidence and a strong report from our client’s new doctor outlining his severe limitations and inability to work. We also argued that Metlife failed to consider the medical conditions in combination. After investigation, Metlife agreed our client was disabled and reinstated his benefits. He was so happy with the representation he received that he referred a friend to Fields Law Firm.

A Nuclear Medical Technologist from California suffered from extreme muscle weakness that could turn into a much more serious disease. She worked through it until her condition prevented her from doing almost anything. Three minutes on a seated stepping machine prevented her from walking for the two days following. She attempted physical therapy to try to fix her situation without any luck. She was taken out of work by her doctors and applied for Long Term Disability benefits through her employer, but her claim was denied. She could not understand how they did not see that she was disabled. She reached out to the Fields Law team for help through this complicated process.

The Fields Law team could not believe that the insurer denied this claim and immediately took on the case. Our attorneys submitted an appeal that pointed to all the ways in which our client was disabled, from medical records to the lack of being able to perform several activities of daily living. Our attorneys also obtained narrative reports from our client’s doctors to include in the appeal that supported disability. We also referenced that the Social Security Administration had deemed our client disabled and granted her Social Security Disability benefits. Metlife did not even conduct their own independent medical examination of our client before denying her benefits. Our client can no longer enjoy her life, let alone work, and the only people that could not see that was her Long Term Disability insurance provider. Following the appeal, Metlife finally accepted that our client was disabled and granted her ongoing Long Term Disability benefits. Our client was so grateful for the work of the entire Fields Law team.

A University Department Head from California began feeling intense abdominal pain. Her doctor diagnosed her with interstitial cystitis; a bladder condition that causes serious discomfort. As she searched for treatment options, she became depressed. Her symptoms caused her to miss work, and she applied for disability benefits through her employer. The insurer approved her for Short Term Disability benefits, but when the time came to switch her claim to Long Term Disability, Metlife said she no longer fit their definition of disabled.

Worried for her lost income, she contacted Fields Law for help. Our team contacted Metlife and received a complete copy of her claim file which revealed that our client had an opportunity to appeal the decision. Our support team obtained medical records from all our client’s treating physicians and requested narrative reports that supported our client’s claim. After the evidence was gathered, the Fields Law attorneys drafted a strong appeal to Metlife, highlighting treatment records and the applicable law. They reviewed the appeal and overturned their decision. Our client received a lump sum for back-pay and received ongoing monthly benefits.