Plaintiff Bridget McGill has filed a lawsuit against Unum, alleging that they have denied her legitimate disability insurance claim in bad faith, denying her the benefits that her insurance policy rightfully owes her.

During her time at Time-Warner Cable, McGill had a long-term disability insurance plan. According to her lawsuit, she became totally disable in Nov. of 2011. However, Unum disputed this claim, and McGill sought legal action to remedy the situation, in accordance with the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) and the terms of the original insurance policy.

Unum has faced other lawsuits, alleging bad faith on their insurance policies. Bad faith is a legal term, meaning that a party intends to violate the terms of a contract. Unum has been the subject of both media scrutiny and lawsuits.

In 2002, the CBS news magazine “60 Minutes” aired a segment pertaining to Unum. The “60 Minutes” investigation revealed alleged unfairly practices. This including hiring company physicians to “overrule” policyholders’ claims, and giving out a “hungry vulture” award. This award was awarded employees who denied the most insurance claims, a sort of quota. Unum’s actions got the company branded an “outlaw corporation” by then-California Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi.

Additionally, Unum has faced hundreds of lawsuits similar to McGills. These lawsuits allege that Unum has denied their legitimate long-term disability insurance claims, sometimes allegedly using the same tactics exposed in the 60 Minutes investigation.

ERISA, the law that regulates pensions and long-term disability insurance, was first created in response to pension scandals in the Studebaker Corporation during the 1960s. Under this law, policyholders have to exhaust any internal appeals within the company before seeking legal action. McGill’s suit alleges that she had done so. Under ERISA, once internal appeals are exhausted, a policyholder may resort to legal action, as McGill has.

Her lawsuit seeks the instatement of her long-term disability insurance benefits, as provided for in the original insurance policy. It also seeks the repayment of back-owed payments, interest, and legal fees.

The case is Bridgett McGill v. Unum Life Insurance Company of America, Case No. 2:13-cv-00484-MRA, filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, Eastern District.