BRANDI GOODWIN v. UNUM LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY OF AMERICA - Articles

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Posted by: Azya Thornton on May 15, 2025

Court: 6th Circuit Court (Published Opinions)

Attorneys 1: ON BRIEF: Tony C. Merry, LAW OFFICES OF TONY C. MERRY, LLC, Worthington, Ohio, for Appellant.

Attorneys 2: ON BRIEF: Brett K. Bacon, Olivia Lin Southam, FRANTZ WARD LLP, Cleveland, Ohio, for Appellee.

Judge(s): THAPAR, NALBANDIAN, and DAVIS, Circuit Judges

Court Appealed: United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio at Columbus

THAPAR, Circuit Judge. Brandi Goodwin worked as a part-time nursing assistant at a hospital. After she contracted COVID-19, she filed for short-term disability benefits. Unum Life Insurance Company, the administrator of the hospital’s employee-benefits plans, approved her claim. But the short-term disability benefits soon ran out. When it came time to decide whether Goodwin would receive long-term disability benefits, Unum denied her claim. The district court upheld Unum’s denial. Because Unum’s decision was neither procedurally nor substantively unreasonable, we affirm.

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