- Amount
- $382,000 (court-ordered payment to our client)
- Counsel
- Interpleader Law
- Result for
- The insured's former wife, the named beneficiary, our client
- Case
- Aetna Life Insurance Co. v. Vacknitz
- Court
- U.S. District Court, Southern District of Texas
- Docket
- No. 4:19-cv-01590
- Decided
- November 20, 2019
- Issue
- A capacity challenge to an online beneficiary change under an ERISA plan, resolved by agreement
Shortly before he died, the insured used his employer’s online system to name his former wife as beneficiary of his ERISA group life coverage. His widow challenged the change, claiming he lacked capacity. The insurer interpleaded the benefit and was discharged.
We represented the former wife. The claimants resolved the dispute by agreement, and about seven months after the case was filed, the court entered a final judgment ordering the registry funds disbursed, with our client receiving the amount shown plus accrued interest. No court ruled on the capacity claim.
What it shows. Under an ERISA plan, the plan’s own records control, and a challenger who doubts the insured’s capacity carries the burden. That often leads to an early resolution.
Read the court's order
For a detailed legal summary of this decision, see interpleader.com's decisions library.
Past results do not guarantee a similar outcome. This summary describes the court's ruling; it is not legal advice about any other case.
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