Bethany Williams v. National Union Fire Ins.

This case, brought under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (“ERISA”), stems from the sudden death of Jack Williams as a result of Deep Vein Thrombosis (“DVT”) shortly after he completed roughly 28 hours of air travel in a five-day period. Appellee National Union Fire Insurance Co. of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania denied accidental death benefits to Williams’ family on the ground that his death did not result from an “accident” under the terms of the policy. The district court accepted the insurer’s interpretation of the policy and granted summary judgment for National Union. Because we agree that Williams’ death did not result from an “accident” as defined by the policy, and thus was not a covered “injury,” we affirm.

BACKGROUND

I. Facts

Jack Williams was an acclaimed horticulturist who traveled extensively in his role as the international product manager and technical support representative for Paul Ecke Ranch, Inc., a company based in Encinitas, California. In October 2010, Williams flew more than 15 hours from Los Angeles to Tokyo and shortly thereafter took three additional flights, totaling almost 13 hours, from Tokyo to several Australian cities. On the morning of…