Del Gallego v. Wells Fargo & Company Long Term Disability Plan et al

Filing 31

ORDER RE HEARING. Signed by Judge Chhabria on 12/16/2014. (vclc1S, COURT STAFF) (Filed on 12/16/2014)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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JOHN DEL GALLEGO,

Case No. 13-cv-04518-VC

Plaintiff,
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v.

ORDER

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WELLS FARGO & COMPANY LONG
TERM DISABILITY PLAN, et al.,

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United States District Court
Northern District of California

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Defendants.

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The parties should consider the following questions in advance of the upcoming hearing on
the cross-motions for judgment:
Assume the Court concludes, in light of the language at the bottom of page 604 of the

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administrative record as well as the list of sources of "other income benefits" that follows, that

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"other income benefits" within the meaning of the plan are limited to benefits for lost income.

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Assume further that the loss of future earning capacity falls within the definition of lost income.

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Was it a violation of the plan for the defendants to offset the entire amount of the plaintiffs'

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weekly permanent partial disability benefits, as opposed to a mere portion of them, in light of the

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California Supreme Court's conclusion that permanent partial disability benefits compensate both

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for loss of future earning capacity and harm to bodily integrity? See Milpitas Unified Sch. Dist. v.

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Workers' Comp. Appeals Bd., 115 Cal. Rptr. 3d 112, 119–120 (Ct. App. 2010). Should the Court

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remand to the claims administrator for a determination of what portion of the plaintiff's weekly

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workers' compensation benefits were in fact a benefit for lost income?

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IT IS SO ORDERED.
Dated: December 16, 2014

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______________________________________
VINCE CHHABRIA
United States District Judge

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United States District Court
Northern District of California

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