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“Brent was knowledgeable, thoughtful and had a strategic approach. I will never be able to properly thank Brent enough for helping me reach a positive outcome. Brent was efficient with his time and strategy, unbelievably empathetic and re-assuring. Thank you to Brent....I am forever grateful.”
Welcome to Dorian Law’s blog page. This is where we write about useful tips, emerging trends, and provide thoughtful insights regarding LTD, Life, and AD&D Insurance benefits. Search for something you are interested in or check out a topic from the list below. Whatever brought you here, I hope we can make a difference.
- Abuse of Discretion
- Accidental Death Insurance (AD&D)
- Attorneys' Fees
- Bad Faith
- Best Font for Legal Briefs
- Breach of Fiduciary Duty
- Case Review Corner
- Cherry-Picking Medical Records
- Costs
- Denied Disability Benefits
- Disability Insurance
- Disability Insurance Company Tactics
- Disability While Working
- Duty to Cooperate
- ERISA
- ERISA Preemption
- ERISA accidental death claims
- ERISA disability claims
- Exhausting Administrative Remedies
- Fibromyalgia
- Footnote Citations
- Hiring an Insurance Lawyer
- Individual Disability
- Interpleader
- LTD Appeal Checklist
- Legal Document Design
- Legal Ethics
- Legal Typography
- Legal Writing Tips
- Life Insurance
- Long Term Disability
- Long Term Disability Insurance
- Long-COVID
- Lupus
- ME/CFS
- MetLife
- Objective Medical Evidence
- Pre-existing Condition
- Provider Reimbursement
- Punitive Damages
- Reliance Standard
- Retroactive Disability Claims
- Sedentary Work
- Severance Agreement
- TBI
- Taxes
- Unum
- Waiver of ERISA Claims
- insurance appeal
- insurance denial
Punitive Damages for Breach of the Covenant of Good Faith and Fair Dealing Based on Reckless Disregard in California
In California, insurance companies have a duty to act fairly and honestly with their policyholders. If they don't, it's called "bad faith." Sometimes, if an insurance company acts really badly, they might have to pay extra money called "punitive damages" to punish them and stop them from doing it again. To get punitive damages, the person suing usually has to show the insurance company acted with "malice," meaning they intentionally tried to harm someone or didn't care about their rights, or with "oppression," meaning they were cruel and unjust. Just being careless or "reckless" might not be enough to get punitive damages unless it shows they really didn't care about someone's rights or safety.