Court Remands NFL Player’s Case After Finding Retirement Board Abused Discretion, in Part by Relying on Opinion of Physician It Retained

A magistrate judge from The Northern District of California has handed a victory to a former NFL player, who had challenged the decision of the Retirement Board of the Bert Bell/Pete Rozelle NFL Player Retirement Plan (Plan), which denied him total and permanent (T&P) disability benefits under the Plan and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974. In ruling for the plaintiff, Charles Dimry, the court found that the defendants abused their discretion in denying his disability cl