Guardian Life Insurance Co. of America v. Gabrielian & Associates Insurance Services

MEMORANDUM and ORDER

Appellants Leo Gabrielian and Gabrieli-an and Associates Insurance Services, Inc., (G & A) appeal from the district court’s judgment in favor of appellee Guardian Life Insurance. The district court had jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1332 (a), and we have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291 .

1. The district court did not err in finding that Guardian Life had the right to rescind the G & A policy based on Gabrie-lian’s material misrepresentation of Melissa Alexanians’ status as an employee. See Lim v. City of Long Beach, 217 F.3d 1050, 1054 (9th Cir.2000). Alexanians was not an “employee” for purposes of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), as Gabrielian and G & A appear to concede. To determine whether Alexanians was an ERISA employee, we need not decide whether the district court abused its discretion in admitting Alexanians’ statements to the Guardian Life investigator. See Tritchler v. Cnty. of Lake, 358 F.3d 1150, 1155 (9th Cir.2004); Fed. R.Evid. 801, 802. Even without these statements, the district court’s conclusion that Alexanians was not an ERISA employee was not erroneous, so Gabrielian and G & A suffered no prejudice from…