Unum to Face Life Insurance Claims Despite Federal Benefits Law

Unum Life Insurance Co. of America must face an insured individual’s breach of contract claims because federal employee benefit requirements don’t apply to the policy he bought, the District of Maryland said.

Unum overlooked “the utter lack of evidence” that the insured individual’s employer played any role in obtaining, negotiating, administering, or securing Jeffrey K. Shrago’s policy, and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act doesn’t preempt his claims, the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland said Wednesday.

Shrago, who works in commercial real estate, bought individual disability insurance through Unum in 1994.

He and two of his colleagues, ...