Opinion
No. 14-35397
03-29-2018
LORRAINE BATES; CHARLES EHRMAN BATES; EILEEN BURKE; JACI EVANS, as Successor Personal Representative for the Estate of Thomas Marier; and DALLA FRANCIS, as Personal Representative for the Estate of George Alexander, Plaintiffs - Appellants, v. BANKERS LIFE AND CASUALTY COMPANY, an Illinois insurance company; CNO FINANCIAL GROUP, Inc., a Delaware corporation, Defendants - Appellees.
NOT FOR PUBLICATION
D.C. No. 3:13-cv-00580-PK MEMORANDUM Appeal from the United States District Court for the District of Oregon
Paul J. Papak II, Magistrate Judge, Presiding Argued and Submitted October 4, 2016 Portland, Oregon Before: CLIFTON, MURGUIA, and NGUYEN, Circuit Judges.
This disposition is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent except as provided by Ninth Circuit Rule 36-3. --------
On February 24, 2017, we certified the following question of state law to the Oregon Supreme Court:
Does a plaintiff state a claim under Oregon Revised Statutes § 124.110(1)(b) for wrongful withholding of money or property where it is alleged that an insurance company has in bad faith delayed the processing of claims and refused to pay benefits owed under an insurance contract?The Oregon Supreme Court answered our certified question on January 19, 2018. Bates v. Bankers Life & Cas. Co., 408 P.3d 1081, 1082-83 (Or. 2018) ("Allegations that an insurance company, in bad faith, delayed the processing of claims and refused to pay benefits owed to vulnerable persons under an insurance contract do not state a claim under ORS 124.110(1)(b) for wrongful withholding of 'money or property.'"). In light of the Oregon Supreme Court's answer, we conclude that the district court's dismissal of Appellants' elder abuse claim under Oregon Revised Statutes § 124 et seq. was proper, and we affirm.
AFFIRMED.