Nielsen v. Unum Life Insurance Company of America, et alCase No. 2:13cv1717U.S. District Court, Western District of Washington We defended Unum Group against claims that its administration of Catholic Health Initiatives’s employee benefit plan was actually a “church plan” and not governed by ERISA. The plaintiff contended that Catholic Health Initiatives (CHI), with 103 hospitals in 18 states and 65,000 locations, had improperly formed its employee benefits plan. Such a determination could have exposed CHI to millions of dollars in risk and lawsuits because different legal standards apply to church plans, versus ERISA plans. The court first determined that ERISA applied. The Court later awarded sanctions against Plaintiff’s attorney for continuing to relitigate the settled issue. |