Twohey

Plaintiff Teresa Twohey appeals the summary judgment against her class action alleging that, under California Insurance Code Section 10369.6, insurer Lincoln National Life Insurance (“Lincoln”) improperly reduced disability benefits paid to her late husband, a Lincoln group policyholder. We are asked to decide an issue of first impression in this circuit: whether California Insurance Code Section 10369.6 applies to group disability insurance. We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291 , and hold the section inapplicable.

I Facts and Procedural History

Twohey’s husband obtained a group disability insurance policy with Lincoln sometime during or prior to 1980, through his membership in the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. The policy promised Mr. Twohey two-thirds of his pre-disability salary for the duration of his disability, but not beyond his sixty-fifth birthday. When Mr. Twohey became permanently disabled in December 1987, he filed a claim for disability benefits with Lincoln, which calculated its liability under the policy to be $2894.52 per month (two-thirds of his monthly salary of $4341.57). Mr. Twohey also applied for, and received, Social Security…