John J. Kalvinskas, Plaintiff-Counter-Defendant-Appellant v. California Institute of Technology, Defendant-Counter-Claimant-Appellee

This appeal requires us to interpret the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), 29 U.S.C. § 621 et seq., as amended by the Older Workers Benefit Protection Act of 1990 (OWBPA), Pub.L. No. 101-433, 104 Stat. 978. At issue is the meaning of a provision in the OWBPA that permits an employer to offset long-term disability benefits with the pension benefits for which a retirement-age employee is eligible.

I

The facts are not in dispute. Kalvinskas was employed as a research scientist at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) from 1974 to March 1990. Over the course of his 16 years of service to Caltech, Kalvinskas obtained six patents, published 16 technical papers, and received numerous awards. In March 1990, Parkinson’s disease forced Kal-vinskas to take medical leave from Caltech. After a six-month elimination period, he became eligible on September 1, 1990, for Long-Term Disability benefits (LTD benefits) provided by Caltech. The LTD plan had a maximum LTD benefit period of 36 months. The LTD plan further provided that Kalvinskas’ monthly LTD benefits would be reduced by any state disability insurance benefits, social security…