SAN DIEGO — A woman is suing AT&T Umbrella Benefit Plan No. 1, a group plan, citing alleged violation of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA).
Lizbeth Valdez filed a complaint on Oct. 20, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California against AT&T Umbrella Benefit Plan No. 1 alleging that the group plan breached its fiduciary duty of good faith and fair dealing.
According to the complaint, the plaintiff alleges that, on October 20, 2015, she became disabled within the definition of the disability benefit plan Although the plaintiff received short term disability benefits for a limited time and remains disabled to date, her benefits were cutoff and further denied on April 25 and again on July 28, thereby exhausting the plan's administrative process.
The plaintiff holds AT&T Umbrella Benefit Plan No. 1 responsible because the defendant allegedly refused to pay plaintiff her rightful disability benefits and caused the plaintiff to retain and pay for legal counsel.
The plaintiff requests a trial by jury and seeks judgment against defendant, coverage for past and ongoing benefits, past-due benefits plus interest, attorney's fees, costs of suit and other relief as the court deems proper. She is represented by Virgil A. Iler and Brooks L. Iler of Iler & Iler LLP in San Diego.
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California Case number 3:16-cv-02613