Oregon Legal News Articles & Interviews

Grand Rapids, MI: While you rarely hear about it, the fact remains that in some cases an insurance company that denies an insured short, or long-term disability benefits sometimes gets it right. To wit, a federal magistrate in Michigan earlier this month determined that Unum Life Insurance Company of America was within its rights to discontinue disability benefits after two years, noting that the plaintiff's wrongly denied disability claims were not credible.

Gibsonia, PA: Tucked in amongst a seemingly never-ending barrage of positivity stemming from the Unum camp with regard to investment, expansion and financial performance are the ever-lurking Unum insurance lawsuits alleging bad faith insurance and similar frustrations after an insurer that happily accepts monthly premiums suddenly does an about-face and pulls that plug when it comes time to pay up.

Portland, OR: A medical doctor who carried Unum insurance for long-term disability has launched an Unum lawsuit against the global supplier of LTD insurance after the insured’s benefits were abruptly stopped, and his LTD claim denied. The benefit to the plaintiff, according to claims made in the Unum disability claims lawsuit, amounts to $12,500 gross per month the plaintiff asserts is owed to him pursuant to the terms of his disability policy.

Bend, OR: Since undergoing abdominal mesh surgery four years ago, Dale has experienced more pain than he did before the mesh was used to repair a hernia. “I get severe pain in the area of my hernia repair and sometimes a burning feeling but I never knew what was causing it, and neither did my doctor,” he says. These symptoms and more are similar to other abdominal mesh victims who needed revision surgery to remove it—or some of it.

Portland, OR: Given the amount of recent complaints following hernia repair surgery, abdominal mesh complications could soon equal, or even surpass, transvaginal mesh complaints, of which more than 100,000 lawsuits have been filed.

Portland, OR: An ongoing dispute on the books for some ten years was resolved late last year in federal court in Oregon by way of a $15.45 Million settlement laying to rest claims by defendant FedEx their drivers were working as independent contractors when, in the view of the plaintiffs, they were bone fide employees of the company. The class action Oregon Employment lawsuit involved some 400 plaintiffs.

Seattle, WA: As one plaintiff in a talcum powder lawsuit celebrates her $70 million award, more lawsuits have been filed against Johnson & Johnson, alleging the company knew about a potential link between talcum powder and ovarian cancer but did not warn consumers about that risk.

Portland, OR: The anti-psychotic drug Abilify may be good for casinos and credit card companies, but it may not even benefit those people who have schizophrenia—a disorder it was originally approved to treat.

Portland, OR: They're the pills millions of people use to treat symptoms of acid reflux, but in addition to being linked to serious side effects, proton pump inhibitors may also be linked to health problems when people discontinue the medications. Studies suggest proton pump inhibitors (known also as PPIs), are linked to an increased risk of bone fractures, heart attacks, and kidney disease. Concerns have also been raised, however, that when patients discontinue their use of PPIs, they suffer more serious heartburn symptoms.

Beaverton, OR: He’s 65, a father, a grandfather and a few years into his retirement, looking toward his twilight years that statistically should number about 17. That translates into a life expectancy that would take him into his early eighties. But it has not worked out that way for David Hoff, a resident of Beaverton, Oregon. Hoff is living with a diagnosis of Mesothelioma. He’ll be lucky if he sees 67, as opposed to 82.