If you’re faced with a long-term disability denial in Seattle, you and your family are likely dealing with a great deal of emotional and financial stress. This is no time to try to learn all the ins and outs of Washington State disability insurance law. That’s why you should consider hiring a long-term disability lawyer, and the sooner the better.
Here’s what you should know about fighting a denied disability claim and hiring the right Seattle disability lawyer to help you.
3 Things You Should Know If You’re Denied Disability in Seattle
1. Your lawyer should be an expert in Washington State long-term disability and ERISA law
In order to successfully appeal a long-term disability denial, it’s critical to know the Washington State laws that apply and how they affect your claim. If your policy is governed by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), then the appeal process can be even more complicated.
Washington State has its own specific insurance laws that set out what disability insurance companies can and cannot do. These laws are deeply complicated and apply to all Seattle disability claims, no matter if you have an Individual Disability Insurance (IDI) policy or you are a member of an ERISA long-term disability plan.
Read more: How ERISA and Individual Disability Insurance Policies are Different
A long-term disability lawyer with a thorough understanding of Washington State law knows how to hold disability insurance companies accountable. This knowledge is a tremendous asset when appealing a disability denial. When you layer in the complexities of an ERISA claim, the help of an experienced ERISA disability lawyer is practically a necessity.
2. Your case is likely to be heard in federal court
For a variety of reasons, almost all long-term disability disputes in Seattle are heard in federal court. For the rare case heard in state court, Seattle residents will have their case heard in King County Superior Court.
Although Seattle’s largest employers – such as Boeing, Walmart, Amazon, and Microsoft – are all located in the Seattle area, all ERISA disability claims must be heard in federal court.
For non-ERISA claims, all major long-term disability insurance companies are located outside of Washington State. Under federal law, if one of the parties in a long-term disability dispute is located in another state, the claim is almost always eligible to be heard in federal court.
Under federal law, if one of the parties in a long-term disability dispute is located in another state, the claim is almost always eligible to be heard in federal court.
Why is this important? The federal court system has its own specific civil and evidentiary rules that differ from the Washington State courts. Any long-term disability lawyer you hire to represent you must be familiar with these federal court rules and how they work. Not just in theory, but in practice.
Moreover, within Washington State, the federal court system is broken into Western and Eastern districts. If you live in Seattle, for example, your case would be heard in the Western District in the Seattle Division.
This is also very important because the Western District has its own local rules that differ from the Eastern District. Your attorney must be familiar with the local court rules that govern your case.
3. Your case can be handled remotely
The world is online – and the law is no different. Court filings are handled electronically, court hearings can be conducted on the telephone, and communication can be done by email, phone, or video chat.
Roy Law Group manages around 99% of our cases without actually ever being in the same room with our clients. There’s no need to ever meet with us in our Seattle office. Since our entire practice is dedicated to long-term disability law, all of our clients are disabled, and travel is generally difficult for them. That’s why we have set up our firm to take advantage of technology, which enables us to do everything remotely.
Handling a case in Seattle is no different from any other jurisdiction that we represent. Around half of all of our clients are from the Seattle area, and we represent almost all of them remotely.
You deserve the best Seattle disability lawyers
Roy Law Group’s team of experienced attorneys has been serving clients in the Seattle area and throughout Washington State since 2009. After overturning hundreds of disability denials in this region, we know Washington State disability insurance law inside and out.
In fact, Roy Law Group fought one of the most significant long-term disability cases in Seattle. Our case set the precedent into law for protecting all long-term disability claimants that live anywhere in Washington State.
Read more on this groundbreaking case: Flaaen v. Principal Life.
Do you live in Seattle and have a long-term disability claim that has been wrongfully denied? It’s time to talk to Roy Law Group. Our compassionate team of expert lawyers will handle everything for you and fight on your behalf.
Contact Roy Law Group right away to set up your consultation.