What is ERISA?

What is ERISA?

ERISA stands for the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, a federal law passed by Congress in 1974. President Nixon signed ERISA into law after 10 years of study designed to reform the nation's pension system.

Congress ultimately included employer-provided insurance benefits as part of the law. That is why most Short Term Disability, Long Term Disability, Health, and Life Insurance benefits that are offered by private employers are covered by ERISA. ERISA applies only to employee benefits provided by private employers. If you work for a government entity or a church, ERISA will not apply to your claim. However, any private employer (even a small company with only one employee other than the owner) that provides employee benefits will be subject to ERISA.

With certain exceptions, ERISA creates one uniform system to administer these group benefit programs sponsored by employers. However, this “uniform system” is far from uniform. The law actually allows employers to establish nearly any type of benefit plan they wish, as long as they provide certain documents to employees and allow for an appeal when benefits are denied.

No matter which lawyer your hire, if you have a group benefit claim covered by ERISA, make sure your lawyer has experience handling ERISA cases. There are many differences between ERISA cases and insurance claims regulated by state laws, and if you or your lawyer do not know those differences and how to handle them, it can hurt your case. ERISA Attorney John Tucker is an experienced attorney who has handled over 1000 ERISA benefit claims of all types, including disability insurance, health insurance, life insurance, accidental death, 401k, and pension cases.

Copyright (c) 2010 by John V. Tucker and Tucker & Ludin, P.A. All rights reserved. For assistance with your Long Term Disability claim, ERISA Disability benefit claim, Social Security Disability claim, or Veterans Disability compensation or pension claim, call Disability Lawyer John Tucker at (866) 282-5260.

How do I apply for Veteran's Disability benefits with the V.A.?

The Department of Veteran's Affairs (VA) uses an online application process to apply for VA Compensation (Disability Benefits). You can find that application on the VA website at https://vabenefits.vba.va.gov/vonapp/main.asp

You are not allowed to hire an attorney at the initial application phase. However, you can use one of the many veterans service organizations to assist you, and we recommend that you contact one of them. There is a list of these organizations on the VA website at http://www1.va.gov/vso/index.cfm?template=view

If you are denied VA compensation benefits, you can hire an attorney to file a Notice of Disagreement and handle your appeal. You should contact an attorney for an opinion about your rights to appeal and your likelihood of success.

Copyright (c) 2010 by John V. Tucker and Tucker & Ludin, P.A. All rights reserved. For assistance with your Long Term Disability claim, ERISA Disability benefit claim, Social Security Disability claim, or Veterans Disability compensation or pension claim, call Disability Lawyer John Tucker at (866) 282-5260.

Disability Attorney John Tucker Was on Faculty at National Association of Disability Representatives Convention

On April 27, 2010, Disability Attorney John Tucker served on the faculty at the 10th Annual Disability Benefits Law Convention of the National Association of Disability Representatives ('NADR') in Chicago. NADR is a professional organization made up of attorneys and non-attorneys that represent individuals in Social Security Disability and SSI claims.

Mr. Tucker is a frequent lecturer and author on disability topics, including Individual Disability insurance, ERISA (group) Disability benefits, Credit Disability Insurance, Social Security Disability, and Veterans Disability benefits.

Copyright (c) 2010 by John V. Tucker and Tucker & Ludin, P.A. All rights reserved. For assistance with your Long Term Disability claim, ERISA Disability benefit claim, Social Security Disability claim, or Veterans Disability compensation or pension claim, call Disability Lawyer John Tucker at (866) 282-5260.

Disability Attorney John Tucker Elected Secretary of AAJ Social Security Disability Section

Disability Benefits Attorney John Tucker with Tucker & Ludin, P.A. based in Clearwater, Florida was elected as Secretary of the Social Security Disability Section of the American Association of Justice (AAJ). AAJ is a national organization dedicated to protecting America's civil justice system.

Mr. Tucker was also a featured lecturer at AAJ National Convention in San Francisco, California on July 25, 2009.


Copyright (c) 2009 by John V. Tucker and Tucker & Ludin, P.A. All rights reserved. For assistance with your Long Term Disability claim, ERISA Disability benefit claim, Social Security Disability claim, or Veterans Disability compensation or pension claim, call Disability Lawyer John Tucker at (866) 282-5260.

Tucker & Ludin Shareholder Eric Ludin Receives 2009 "Heroes Among Us" Award

On Saturday, January 24, 2009, disability benefits attorney John Tucker had the honor of introducing his law partner, Eric Ludin to a crowd of over 150 people at the 2009 St. Petersburg Bar Foundation Awards Dinner at the St. Petersburg Yacht Club. Mr. Ludin was being recognized for his lifetime of service to the community by the Bar Foundation. The "Heroes" award has been given for the past 5 years to bring awareness to the good works that lawyers do in the community.

Eric Ludin has a long and distinguished history of service in St. Petersburg and Pinellas County. In addition to serving as President of organizations like the St. Petersburg Bar Association and the St. Petersburg Bar Foundation, Mr. Ludin is also a Past-President of his synagogue, Congregation B'nai Israel. He has orchestrated and chaired several fundraising efforts for local Jewish charities, and was instrumental in creating a Jewish summer camp in Georgia. Currently, he is the President-elect of the Board of Directors of Menorah Manor, a local retirement and rehabilitation facility.

Perhaps the most enduring contribution that Eric Ludin has made to St. Petersburg revolves around his efforts to bring past discrimination by the St. Petersburg Bar Association to light. When he was President of the Bar, Ludin not only formed a standing diversity committee which exists to this day, but also established the Judge Frank White Scholarship (given to Stetson University Law Students of color) and created a museum exhibit titled "A Legacy of Courage, Vision & Hope" which chronicled the discriminatory efforts of the local bar that continued into the late 1960's. This exhibit has been shown in numerous locations, including the Florida state capital. Times have certainly changed, as evidenced by the fact that today the St. Petersburg Bar Association's President is an African-American attorney, Jeanine Williams.

Tucker & Ludin, P.A., salutes our shareholder Eric E. Ludin for his lifetime of service. For more information about Mr. Ludin, please visit www.tuckerludin.com.

Copyright (c) 2008 by John V. Tucker and Tucker & Ludin, P.A. All rights reserved. For assistance with your Long Term Disability claim, ERISA Disability benefit claim, Social Security Disability claim, or Veterans Disability compensation or pension claim, call Disability Lawyer John Tucker at (866) 282-5260.

John Tucker Receives "AV Rating" from Martindale-Hubbell...Highest Rating a Lawyer Can Receive

John Tucker, Managing Shareholder of Tucker & Ludin, P.A. - The Disability Law Firm - has received an "AV" Rating from Martindale-Hubbell. This rating is based upon confidential peer review surveys completed by members of the legal community that know about the skills and honesty of a particular lawyer.

The AV Rating is the highest a lawyer can receive. Martindale-Hubbell states that the AV Rating "identifies a lawyer with very high to preeminent legal ability," and reflects a lawyer's "expertise, experience, integrity and overall professional excellence."


Copyright (c) 2008 by John V. Tucker and Tucker & Ludin, P.A. All rights reserved. Any content borrowed or referenced from another source is referenced by citation to the original source as noted in the text above.