Opinion ID: 1104139
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Does state law relate to the Plan?:

Text: Our first inquiry to determine if ERISA preemption applies in the instant case is whether the state laws at issue relate to the Plan. If under the law, Copeland has a right to assert the insured employee's rights under the Plan against the PCF, i.e., if Copeland has been subrogated to the insured employee's rights, such rights are only determined after an examination of applicable state law. In this case, Copeland's subrogation rights may emanate from several sources: Louisiana statutory or jurisprudential law on subrogation whether conventional or legal, Louisiana principles of contract interpretation, or rights given directly to Copeland under the terms of the Plan. Copeland's relationship with the insured employee Donna Wallace stems from Wallace's status as an employee and her participation in her employer-sponsored Plan which provided health insurance coverage. Any right that Copeland may have acquired from Wallace is the result of Wallace's participation in the Plan because the Plan was the source of Wallace's health insurance benefits. Therefore, application of any state law to determine the extent of Copeland's acquired subrogation rights must logically relate to the Plan, whether the rights arise directly from language in Plan documents or in written agreements entered into after Wallace's claim for health insurance benefits arose.