Reliance Standard’s Benefit Denial Tainted by Irregularities

A financial adviser for Fulton Financial Corp. won his appeal seeking reinstatement of disability benefits when the Third Circuit ruled his benefit insurer tried to introduce improper evidence and committed procedural irregularities that “aligned closely” with its financial interests.

Reliance Standard Life Insurance Co. urged the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit to consider an affidavit from the senior analyst responsible for Leo Noga’s benefit claim, which provided context for the procedural irregularities surrounding Noga’s claim. The Third Circuit declined the invitation, explaining that the administrative record in an Employee Retirement Income Security Act case “may not be ...