The team at MK Disability Lawyers shared their insights on a myriad of issues during a busy year of representing their clients. Please see an excerpt reprinted below, and visit the Legal Matters Canada website to read the full article. Partner Leanne Goldstein started 2022 off by explaining that having a diagnosis in a disability claim does not automatically lead to benefits nor does the lack of one necessarily mean you are not entitled to file a claim. Proving a disability claim can be daunting even with a diagnosis In February, partner Rupa K ..read more

MK Disability Lawyers partner Rupa Karyampudi was honoured to be featured in a recent article by Legal Matters Canada. Please see an excerpt reprinted below, and visit the Legal Matters Canada website to read the full article. The link between chronic pain and mental health issues is often marginalized or ignored, especially when it comes to long-term disability (LTD) claims, says Toronto and Markham-area disability lawyer Rupa Karyampudi.  Karyampudi, a partner at MK Disability Lawyers, points to a Harvard Medical School study that reports the “overlap of an ..read more

MK Disability Lawyers partner Rupa Karyampudi was honoured to be featured in a recent article by Legal Matters. Please see an excerpt reprinted below, and visit the Legal Matters website to read the full article. Representing clients who are neurodivergent in long-term disability insurance claims can be challenging, says Toronto and Markham-area disability lawyer Rupa Karyampudi, which is why patience and understanding is necessary in order to be successful. Karyampudi, a partner at MK Disability Lawyers, explains that with neurodivergence, a person’s brain processes, learn ..read more

With some people considering medical assistance in dying (MAiD) because of the financial burdens of living with a physical or mental disability, Toronto and Markham-area long term disability lawyer Leanne Goldstein says governments have an obligation to provide more support in an effort to prevent unnecessary suffering and death. Goldstein, a partner at MK Disability Lawyers, says the federal government will potentially open up MAiD to those with mental illness in 2023. Meanwhile, she says she recently came across a news report of a woman suffering from long COVID who ..read more

MK Disability Lawyers partner Courtney Mulqueen was honoured to be featured in a recent article by Legal Matters. Please see an excerpt reprinted below, and visit the Legal Matters website to read the full article. “It is occurring on almost every teacher file I am handling. Suddenly there is surveillance on them. That is really unusual,” says Mulqueen, a partner at MK Disability Lawyers. “We normally do not see teachers being placed under surveillance in litigation.” She calls this monitoring “a total waste of the insurer’s resources.” “It is not going to get them very fa ..read more

MK Disability Lawyers partner Rupa Karyampudi was honoured to be featured in a recent article by Legal Matters. Please see an excerpt reprinted below, and visit the Legal Matters website to read the full article. According to the World Health Organization, the coronavirus pandemic has “led to a worldwide increase in mental health problems, including widespread depression and anxiety. People living with pre-existing mental disorders are also at greater risk of severe illness and death from COVID-19 and should be considered a risk group upon diagnosis of infection.”  “T ..read more

MK Disability Lawyers partner Leanne Goldstein was honoured to be featured in a recent article by Legal Matters about how AI fits in the legal profession. Please see an excerpt reprinted below, and visit the Legal Matters website to read the full article. “Embracing technology can be extremely beneficial but it is important to understand how to use it effectively in your legal practice with an eye on how to best serve litigants,” says Goldstein, a partner at MK Disability Lawyers. “AI is such an interesting way to enhance access to justice in many different ways,” says Gol ..read more

MK Disability Lawyers partner Leanne Goldstein was honoured to be featured in an article recently by Legal Matters about the importance of not giving up after a disability claim has been denied. Please see an excerpt reprinted below, and visit the Legal Matters website to read the full article. When you file a long-term disability (LTD) claim you expect that you will be paid the benefits you are owed. After all, you contributed to a plan to protect you in the event that an injury or a disability leaves you unable to perform your duties at work.  You are dis ..read more

Whether your insurance company can insist you apply for Canada Pension Plan (CPP) disability benefits depends on the language in your agreement. Ultimately, an insurance company can insist you apply for CPP disability benefits and you must follow any language in your agreement that requires you to seek alternative benefits. Here’s what you need to know about CPP disability benefits and the situations in which your insurance company can push you to apply for them. What are Canada Pension Plan disability benefits? Unlike Canada Pension Plan (CPP) retirement benefits, which are available to you a ..read more

MK Disability Lawyers partner Rupa Karyampudi was honoured to be featured in a recent article by Legal Matters about research into the benefits of psychedelic drug therapy. Please see an excerpt reprinted below, and visit the Legal Matters website to read the full article. Psychedelic drug-assisted therapy is proving to be effective in treating mental health issues but getting insurance provider approval for its use will likely be a challenge for claimants, says Toronto and Markham-area disability lawyer Rupa Karyampudi. Research has shown that psychedelic d ..read more