A mental health specialist from Portland, Oregon, had her long-term disability benefits terminated by UNUM after just a few months of approved payments, despite a debilitating neurological disorder that had left her cognitively and physically unable to perform the demands of her occupation or any other. She came to Dabdoub Law Firm, where Attorney Emily Quirino built a comprehensive appeal anchored by an independent cognitive functional assessment confirming definitive cognitive deficits, along with unanimous support from six treating providers. Faced with that record, UNUM reversed its termination decision and reinstated our client's long-term disability benefits in full.
What to Know About This Case:
- A mental health specialist from Portland, Oregon, had her long-term disability benefits terminated by UNUM despite a progressive neurological disorder causing severe cognitive impairment, tremors, hypersensitivity, chronic pain, and a wide range of other debilitating symptoms that made returning to work impossible.
- Attorney Emily Quirino built a thorough appeal centered on an independent cognitive functional assessment confirming definitive cognitive deficits, supported by letters from six treating providers who unanimously concluded that our client could not work in any capacity.
- Dabdoub Law Firm secured full reinstatement of our client's long-term disability benefits without the need for litigation.
A Mental Health Professional Undone by Her Own Neurological System
Our client had built her career around supporting others through mental health crises by assessing patients, developing treatment protocols, managing complex cases, conducting crisis interventions, and providing community outreach services. The cognitive demands of that work were significant and often manifested as sustained concentration, precise verbal communication, emotional regulation, rapid information processing, and the ability to manage high-stress interpersonal situations consistently and reliably throughout each workday.
In late 2024, our client was prescribed a new medication as part of her treatment. Within days, she found herself in urgent care with tremors, whole-body vibrations, and muscle stiffness. She discontinued the medication immediately, then discontinued several other medications suspected of contributing to her symptoms. But stopping the medications did not stop the symptoms. Instead, her condition persisted and expanded into a complex, multi-system neurological disorder that defied straightforward resolution. Over the months that followed, she experienced tremors, whole-body vibrations, chronic cognitive impairment, brain fog, memory loss, word-finding difficulties, hypersensitivity to sound and light, chronic pain, headaches, vision problems, dizziness, and autonomic dysregulation. The symptoms became so severe that she visited the emergency room three separate times and ultimately stopped working entirely in April 2025.
The cruelest part of her condition was how it dismantled the capabilities her occupation required most. A mental health specialist cannot perform her work without the ability to concentrate, process complex information, communicate clearly, and sustain prolonged interpersonal engagement under emotionally demanding conditions. Our client's neurological disorder attacked each of those capacities directly. She struggled to follow conversations, frequently lost words mid-sentence, became overwhelmed by ordinary sensory input, and found that even modest cognitive or emotional demands caused her symptoms to intensify. Very quickly, she was unable to perform her role at all. Six treating providers across multiple specialties, including her neurologist, primary care provider, physical therapist, naturopathic provider, gynecologist, and a specialist in neurological withdrawal syndromes, each independently reviewed her condition and concluded that our client could not work in any capacity.
Attorney Quirino Built an Unshakable Case Against UNUM
UNUM’s termination letter claimed there were no documented functional limitations preventing our client from returning to work, which was a position that was difficult to reconcile with the reality of her medical situation and one that Attorney Emily Quirino challenged directly and methodically. The appeal she built was designed to eliminate every avenue UNUM might use to argue back.
The centerpiece of the appeal was an independent cognitive functional assessment conducted over two sessions by a licensed psychologist. The two-session format was needed because our client's disorganized thought patterns made it impossible to complete the evaluation in a single sitting, a fact the evaluating psychologist documented explicitly and that itself served as evidence of the severity of her cognitive impairment. The assessment confirmed definitive cognitive deficits attributed to our client's neurological disorder and concluded that those deficits would interfere with her ability to perform not only as a mental health counselor but in any occupation consistent with her education, training, and experience. The evaluating psychologist found no indication of malingering, establishing that the results were a valid and reliable measure of our client's actual functional level.
Attorney Quirino paired that assessment with one of the most comprehensive collections of treating provider support we have seen in a case of this kind. The six aforementioned providers each submitted detailed letters independently documenting our client's restrictions and limitations and each reaching the same conclusion: she was unable to work. Her neurologist noted that formal neurocognitive testing had objectively confirmed cognitive impairment sufficient to preclude occupational functioning, and that her condition had persisted for over a year with no meaningful improvement despite ongoing treatment. Her withdrawal syndrome specialist, a recognized expert in the field with more than 20 years of experience, confirmed that our client's symptoms were consistent with documented clinical cases and that she was largely housebound and frequently bedbound. Taken together, these six voices produced an evidentiary record that directly contradicted every element of UNUM's termination rationale.
Rounding out the appeal were witness statements from two people close to our client who had observed the day-to-day impact of her condition firsthand, a personal statement from our client herself, and a detailed prescription history documenting the medication timeline that preceded her neurological decline. Presented with that body of evidence, UNUM had no defensible basis for maintaining its termination decision. The insurer reversed course and reinstated our client's long-term disability benefits in full without the matter ever reaching federal court.
Lawyers with Expertise in Disability Insurance Claims & Appeals
At Dabdoub Law Firm, disability insurance is all we do. We represent clients nationwide and have successfully handled disability insurance claims involving:
- Long term disability denials and appeals
- Individual disability insurance claims
- Depression and anxiety disorders
- Cognitive impairment and memory loss
- Neurological conditions
- Medication side effects
We have taken on every major insurance company and have built a proven track record of success, including victories in federal court.
Because we specialize in long-term disability, our clients get the benefit of:
- Having an attorney who is an expert in long-term disability claims;
- Having an attorney who has experience with every major disability insurance company; and
- Being backed by a law firm that has a proven track record of winning tough disability lawsuits.
Need Help with a Disability Insurance Claim?
If your disability claim has been denied or you are struggling to navigate the claims process, we can help.
We help with:
- Filing a disability insurance claim
- Appealing denied or terminated long-term disability benefits
- Negotiating a lump-sum settlement
- Filing a lawsuit against your disability insurance company
We represent clients nationwide and charge no fees unless we win your case.
Call (800) 969-0488 or contact us online to speak with an experienced disability attorney. Pay no fees or costs unless you get paid.