A California attorney filed a bad faith insurance claim denial lawsuit against Unum Life Insurance alleging the company is unnecessarily delaying her long-term disability benefits.

Plaintiff Sindee S. is a trial attorney who, due to rheumatoid arthritis, filed for long-term disability benefits under her Unum policy. Her lawsuit alleges that despite overwhelming medical evidence that she is considered “Totally Disabled” under the Unum policy, and despite Unum’s admission that she fits this description and therefore qualifies for LTD benefits, Unum has yet to approve the claim.

Sindee was insured by The Paul Revere Life Insurance Company under a long-term disability (“LTD”) insurance policy since 1993. The Paul Revere Life Insurance Company later became part of the Unum Group.

Under the plaintiff’s Unum LTD policy, Sindee is entitled to benefits of $8,400 per month if she is “Totally Disabled.” To be “Totally Disabled,” according to the policy, the person (because of injury or sickness) must be unable to perform the important duties of their occupation and must be receiving physician’s care.

In 1996, the lawsuit says, Sindee began to experience wrist pain that slowly spread to other joints, and was eventually diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis. Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disorder, which means that the body’s immune system mistakenly attacks the body’s tissue.

She managed her rheumatoid arthritis symptoms with various anti-inflammatory medications and continued her career as a partner in a small firm and later as a sole practitioner.

Over time, because rheumatoid arthritis is a degenerative disease, Sindee’s condition became worse.

In 2013, Sindee’s condition became so problematic that she could not continue her work as a trial attorney. In 2014, Sindee  moved to an estate, trust, and probate firm working a reduced schedule.

She says she hoped to continue working and possibly return to her occupation of over 25 years, and did not immediately file for LTD benefits under the Unum policy. However, she says she began to face increasing medical issues, including b-cell lymphoma, and realized she would no longer be able to work.

Sindee filed the claim in February. By June 5, Unum had not issued a decision on her disability claim, nor had it provided an explanation for the delay.

The lawsuit says Unum promised that its vocational review would be completed in five days, and that she could expect a final decision by the end of June. However, by July 1, Sindee says she had not  received any communication from Unum to explain the delay or give her any additional information.

On July 10, Unum sent a letter to Sindee stating that it needed to verify whether she is “performing the substantial and material duties of [her] pre-disability occupation in [her] current occupation.” The lawsuit says that information had been provided months earlier, suggesting that it is Unum’s intent to delay making a claim decision.

The plaintiff alleges that Unum’s delay, its vague letters, and  various communications to her claiming an inability to make a decision indicate Unum’s willful, malicious, and unreasonable failure to pay LTD benefits to Sindee.

Her claims against Unum include breach of contract and breach of implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing.

Sindee’s Unum bad faith lawsuit would provide compensation covering the cost of the lawsuit, all past due and future benefits under her Unum policy, as well as emotional distress and other damages.

The Unum Bad Faith Insurance Lawsuit is Case No. 2:15-cv-05567-GW-JPR, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, Western Division.