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ERISA Attorney for the Eleventh Circuit

Serving Alabama, Florida & Georgia

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit handles ERISA cases for Alabama, Florida, and Georgia. Like every other circuit court, the Eleventh Circuit implements its own interpretation of ERISA law. It is, therefore, essential for your attorney to understand how the Eleventh Circuit operates based on its previous rulings. At ERISA Law Center, our attorney has the level of experience and understanding of ERISA case law that you need. To discuss your unique case, please feel free to call (844) 710-2993 for a complimentary consultation.

State Law Implemented in ERISA Rulings

The Eleventh Circuit has the most useful choice of law jurisprudence in the country. Generally, ERISA preempts state law - that is, generally ERISA supersedes states' laws, which therefore do not apply (unless "saved" from preemption as a law regulating insurance). The Eleventh Circuit, however, recognizes that when a plan or policy incorporates state law, that law becomes part of the plan or policy and is not preempted. There is then no evidence in the statutory language or common law of ERISA suggesting that a valid choice of law provision is inconsistent with ERISA's policies.

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When an insurance policy or ERISA plan includes a choice of law provision (i.e. "this policy is subject to the laws of e.g. New York,") the Eleventh Circuit enforces the choice of law provision. The Eleventh Circuit reasons that it follows that by choosing the law of a given state the parties incorporate that state law into their policy or plan. In one leading case the insurance policy specified controlling law would be Georgia law. The claim was filed by an Ohio citizen who worked for a Missouri corporation and was injured in the Bahamas. The Eleventh Circuit ruled that it was not unreasonable under these circumstances given the choice of law provision to employ Georgia law as the law controlling the decision.

Our legal team has experience with this. In one of our cases, our client lived in Florida but worked for a corporation with its principal place of business in Minnesota. The choice of law provision in the policy was of Minnesota law. Minnesota law specifies that the literal text of a very narrow "own occupation/any occupation" total disability provisions cannot be utilized. Thus, Minnesota law incorporated by the choice of law provision in the policy was much more favorable to the claimant than Florida law would be - or than the actual language of the policy.

Serving Disability Claimants in the Eleventh Circuit

Our ERISA lawyer serves the Eleventh Circuit by representing claimants in the following states and cities: Alabama: Birmingham, Montgomery, Mobile, Huntsville, Tuscaloosa, Hoover, Dothan, Decatur and Auburn; Florida: Jacksonville, Miami, Tampa, St. Petersburg, Orlando, Hialeah, Tallahassee, Fort Lauderdale, Port St. Luci, Pembroke Pines and Cape Coral; and Georgia: Atlanta, Augusta, Columbus, Savannah, Athens, Sandy Springs, Macon, Roswell, Albany and Johns Creek.

Contact an ERISA attorney today to see how we can help you.