SAN FRANCISCO – An insurer that had alleged two San Mateo County residents misrepresented facts about their claims for benefit coverage and sought full reimbursement in 2016 has decided to settle its case.
The case began in October 2016 when Lincoln Benefit Life Co. filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California against Briceida Ryan and Silvia Cammareri, Ryan’s live-in caretaker who was employed to help because of her brain tumor, alleging fraud and conversion, according to previous Northern California Record coverage.
The plaintiff alleged social media showed Cammareri gave birth during times she declared she was on duty and Ryan operated her graphic design business daily without assistance, and it requested a trial by jury to obtain a judgment against the defendants.
It sought a complete reimbursement of $456,462.60 in policy benefits paid between Jan. 7, 2010, and July 20, 2016, for what Ryan certified was long-term, 24-hour care provided by Cammareri, along with damages, attorney’s fees, costs incurred and further relief as deemed by the court.
A copy of a settlement letter provided to the Record by Cammareri details Lincoln’s confirmation of its “agreement to resolve the case in its entirety for a mutual release of all claims and the dismissal of this entire lawsuit.”
The settlement letters, one addressed to Cammareri and another to Ryan, detailed identical requirements in that every party involved is to abandon and dismiss all claims for restitution, future benefits and damages, along with the defendants' right to future or current benefits.
The letters also state that both need to be returned to notify the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California of the stipulations and counsel. On Dec. 12, 2017, the court entered an order to dismiss with prejudice, ending the almost two-year-old case.