Category: Uncategorized

Reed v. Sossong, 2022 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 66064 (W.D. Pa. April 8, 2022) (Haines, U.S. D.J.)  Plaintiffs assert that as a direct and proximate result of the Defendants' conduct, Daniel Reed "was forced to expend large sums of monies for doctors, hospitals, and other items necessary for proper care and treatment". Defendants move for partial summary judgment to preclude Plaintiffs from recovering damages in the form of a recoverable lien for past medical expenses paid by a private insurer, Highmark Delaware. Defendants contend that Plaintiffs have failed to show that the plan in question was a self-funded plan under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), which would exempt the plan from the requirements of the Pennsylvania Medical Care Availability and Reduction of Error Act ("MCARE"). Instead, Defendants argue that because the plan was insured, the provisions of the MCARE Act apply, precluding as a matter of law the recovery of damages for past medical expenses to the extent those expenses were covered by the insurer. In response, Plaintiffs argue that the plan in question is an HMO, which is exempt from the provisions of the MCARE Act. Alternatively, Plaintiffs…

Meyers v. Travelers Ins. Co., 2022 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 63752 (E.D. Pa. April 6, 2022) (Beetlestone, J.) In April 2018, Plaintiff Ellen M. Meyers suffered extensive injuries in a car accident in Chester County, Pennsylvania, for which she filed a number of insurance claims. The present action arises out of her dispute with Travelers Home and Marine Insurance Company ("Travelers") concerning the amount of underinsured motorist benefits she may recover under a car insurance policy issued by Travelers. The Parties filed dueling motions for summary judgment. Meyers seeks a declaratory judgment that certain language in the insurance policy violates Pennsylvania's Motor Vehicle Financial Responsibility Law, 75 Pa. C.S. §§ 1701 et seq. (the "MVFRL"), and public policy. Travelers seeks a declaratory judgment that its policy is valid, enforceable, and not against public policy. For the reasons that follow, Travelers' Motion for Summary Judgment will be granted and Meyers' Motion for Summary Judgment will be denied. On April 29, 2018, Meyers was driving her Ford Flex in Phoenixville Borough, Chester County, when her car was struck by another vehicle at the intersection of Church Street and Gay Street. Meyers suffered extensive…

CIVIL RIGHTS-JOB DISCRIMINATION-RACE Castleberry v. Sti Group, 2017 U.S. App. LEXIS 12611 (3rd Cir. July 14, 2017) Ambro, C.J.  Castleberry and Brown brought suit asserting that their termination was racially motivated, citing to various examples of discrimination such as remarks made at the workplace and unfair work treatment.  The District Court dismissed their complaint.  Because Plaintiffs state plausible claims of employment discrimination, we reverse and remand. Castleberry and Brown were hired by STI Group in March 2010 as general laborers and supervised by managers from both STI Group and Chesapeake. Shortly after being assigned to a particular worksite, the only other African-American male on the crew was fired. Plaintiffs allege that, when they arrived at work on several occasions, someone had anonymously written “don't be black on the right of way” on the sign-in sheets. They also assert that although they have significant experience working on pipelines (and more so than their non-African-American coworkers), they were only permitted to clean around the pipelines rather than work on them. They claim that, when working on a fence-removal project, a supervisor told Castleberry and his coworkers that if they had “nigger-rigged” the…