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Executives and other high-level professionals face unique challenges when filing for long term disability benefits. Your role likely requires constant decision-making, leadership, and accountability, all of which can become difficult or impossible to maintain when you are struggling with a serious illness or injury.

At Riemer Hess, we have extensive experience representing executives, senior managers, and professionals across industries in securing their long term disability benefits.

Below we鈥檒l answer common questions executives have about the long term disability claims process.  

How can executives qualify for long term disability?

Executives and senior managers often face a unique challenge when seeking long term disability benefits. Insurance companies tend to oversimplify these roles, labeling them as 鈥渟edentary鈥� because they involve sitting for most of the day. However, this classification ignores the true nature of executive work 鈥� where success depends not just on physical presence, but on sustained mental acuity, complex decision-making, and the ability to handle constant pressure.

Even when your job is performed primarily at a desk, the cognitive, emotional, and stamina-based requirements of your position are substantial. Most executives鈥� duties go far beyond typing or attending meetings. They involve maintaining peak mental performance for long stretches of time, managing competing priorities, and making decisions that impact entire organizations.

Core aspects of executive work that can be compromised by disabling conditions include:

• • High Cognitive Demands: Your role requires exceptional focus, rapid information processing, memory, and problem-solving. Conditions causing fatigue, pain, or cognitive fog (such as autoimmune disease, neurological disorders, or medication side effects) can make sustained concentration impossible.
  • Extended Work Hours: Executives rarely have predictable schedules. You may routinely work 50鈥�70 hours a week, travel across time zones, and handle late-night crises. Chronic fatigue, sleep disorders, or cardiovascular issues can severely limit your endurance for such schedules.
  • Continuous Communication and Leadership: You are constantly managing others 鈥� employees, board members, clients, and investors. Mental health conditions, speech or cognitive impairments, or emotional regulation challenges can make these interpersonal demands difficult to meet.
  • Frequent and Demanding Travel: Many executives travel regularly for meetings, conferences, or site visits. Pain, mobility restrictions, or the need for medical accommodations can make travel unsustainable, even if you can perform some desk duties.
  • High Stress and Accountability: Executive roles come with unrelenting pressure to perform, oversee financial goals, and respond to unexpected challenges. Anxiety, depression, or physical conditions exacerbated by stress can make it unsafe or impossible to continue working effectively.

A disabling condition doesn鈥檛 have to leave you bedridden or physically incapacitated to qualify for benefits. If your symptoms prevent you from performing the essential duties of your executive occupation 鈥� such as making sound decisions, maintaining attention, managing staff, or enduring the long hours your position requires 鈥� you may meet your policy鈥檚 definition of disability. 

What do disability insurers overlook about the real duties of executives and managers?

When filing for long term disability, one of the biggest obstacles executives and senior managers face is the insurance company鈥檚 narrow understanding of what their jobs actually entail. Insurers often rely on overly simplified government classifications to define your 鈥渙ccupation,鈥� typically labeling it as sedentary or light work. But the real-world duties of managers and executives extend far beyond sitting at a desk and reviewing reports.

According to the Occupational Information Network (O*NET), a database developed by the U.S. Department of Labor, there are more than 700 recognized managerial occupations, each with its own complex combination of skills, abilities, and performance demands.

While these roles vary across industries, most management and executive positions share certain fundamental responsibilities, such as:

• • Setting strategic goals for teams, departments, or the entire organization.
  • Organizing and delegating work to ensure that objectives are met efficiently.
  • Monitoring and measuring performance against financial or operational targets.
  • Training, motivating, and evaluating employees to maintain productivity and morale.
  • Overseeing budgets and financial operations to control costs and maximize profitability.
  • Handling quality control, purchasing, and customer service issues that affect business outcomes.
  • Managing personnel decisions, including hiring, firing, and conflict resolution. 

For example, O*NET lists these tasks as occupational requirements for general and operations managers :

• • Overseeing activities directly related to producing goods or providing services.

• • Directing and coordinating business operations related to production, pricing, sales, or distribution.
  • Reviewing financial statements and activity reports to assess productivity and identify areas for improvement.
  • Preparing schedules, assigning duties, and managing staff performance.
  • Coordinating budget and finance activities to ensure operational efficiency.
  • Establishing company policies and objectives, and collaborating with board members and department heads.
  • Determining staffing needs, interviewing and training new employees, or overseeing those processes.
  • Leading sales or marketing initiatives and coordinating interdepartmental projects.
  • Setting pricing and credit terms based on market forecasts and customer demand.
  • Representing management in contract or purchase negotiations.

These responsibilities demonstrate that executive and managerial work involves far more than sedentary tasks. It requires constant cognitive engagement, complex decision-making, interpersonal communication, and emotional resilience.

When your insurer evaluates your claim, it鈥檚 crucial that they understand how your condition impacts your ability to perform these functions. A physical or cognitive impairment that limits your ability to concentrate, manage employees, travel, or handle long hours can make performing these essential duties impossible, even if you can still 鈥渟it at a desk.鈥�

Insurance companies tend to focus on three specific strength requirements of an occupation: sitting, standing and walking. The Dictionary of Occupational Titles (4th ed.) (鈥淒OT鈥�) published by the U.S. Department of Labor rates occupations for these requirements. Most management jobs in our modern information and service economy are classified as either sedentary or light.

If you can sit for six hours, stand for one hour and walk for one hour, long term disability insurers will often assert that you are capable of performing a sedentary occupation. If you can stand and walk for more than one hour each day, your insurer will usually find you are capable of performing a light occupation.

While these requirements are certainly important, focusing on them neglects other significant requirements that could prevent you from working. 

That鈥檚 why an accurate vocational description of your position is a key part of a strong long term disability claim. At Riemer Hess, we work closely with our clients to document and articulate the true demands of their executive or managerial role, ensuring their insurer cannot minimize their responsibilities or misclassify their occupation. 

What tactics do disability insurers use against executives?

Because executive long term disability (鈥淟TD鈥�) claims are often high-value and can extend for many years, insurance companies often scrutinize them more aggressively. Insurers know that executives typically have higher salaries and robust benefit plans, so they have a strong financial incentive to deny or limit these claims whenever possible.

Understanding the tactics disability insurers use allows you to anticipate their strategies and build your claim in a way that withstands this scrutiny. Some of the most common denial tactics include:

• • Downplaying Job Demands: Insurers frequently classify executive and management positions as 鈥渟edentary,鈥� suggesting your job only requires sitting and minimal physical effort. This simplistic view ignores the mental stamina, leadership, and decision-making responsibilities that define your role. For example, your insurer may argue that because you can sit at a desk for several hours, you can perform your job 鈥� overlooking the fact that fatigue, cognitive fog, or chronic pain prevent you from managing high-stakes operations or leading teams effectively.
  • Misclassifying Your Occupation: Many policies define disability in terms of your 鈥渙wn occupation.鈥� Insurers may exploit this by relying on generic labor data from sources like the Dictionary of Occupational Titles, reclassifying your executive position into a less demanding role. For instance, they might treat a Chief Financial Officer as a 鈥渂ookkeeper鈥� or a Chief Operating Officer as an 鈥渁dministrative manager.鈥� This tactic allows them to claim you can perform your 鈥渙ccupation鈥� even if you can no longer fulfill your actual job duties.
  • Selective Evidence Review: Disability insurers often cherry-pick medical records, giving weight to normal test results while ignoring symptoms that fluctuate or are subjective (such as pain, fatigue, or cognitive dysfunction). They may discount credible reports from your treating physicians and emphasize brief observations from their own consultants. This is especially harmful in executive claims where the main limitations often involve cognitive endurance, focus, or stress tolerance rather than easily measurable impairments.
  • Independent Medical Examinations (鈥淚MEs鈥�): Insurers commonly require you to attend an IME with a doctor of their choosing. Despite the name, these examinations are rarely independent. The physicians conducting them are often hired repeatedly by the same insurers and may downplay your symptoms or question your credibility. Executives are particularly vulnerable here, as insurers often use IME reports to argue that mental or stress-related symptoms are 鈥渟ituational鈥� rather than disabling.
  • Surveillance and Social Media Monitoring: Because of the financial value of executive claims, insurers often conduct extensive surveillance. This can include tracking your movements with private investigators, reviewing your social media, and running background checks. They may misinterpret isolated activities, like attending a short event or traveling for personal reasons, as evidence that you鈥檙e capable of full-time work. Insurers rarely consider the context: that you may be pushing through pain, needing days of recovery afterward, or performing limited tasks far below your previous workload.
  • Vocational Assessments That Favor Your Insurer: Insurers may hire vocational consultants to assess whether you can work in another occupation. These consultants often rely on generic job data and ignore the cognitive, stress-related, and leadership functions of executive positions. Their reports may inaccurately conclude that you can perform 鈥渁lternative鈥� occupations that bear little resemblance to your career level or expertise.

By recognizing these tactics early, you can take steps to protect your claim. At Riemer Hess, we help executives counter these insurer strategies by:

• • Ensuring your occupational duties are defined accurately and in detail.
  • Coordinating to obtain comprehensive medical and vocational documentation that reflects both your physical and cognitive limitations.
  • Preparing you for insurer-ordered exams and interviews to prevent missteps.
  • Challenging biased reviews, flawed IMEs, and surveillance interpretations.

Insurance companies have teams of professionals dedicated to minimizing payouts. Having an experienced LTD attorney ensures you have a team of your own 鈥� one that understands how to anticipate these tactics and defend your right to the benefits you鈥檝e earned.

How can I protect my LTD claim as an executive?

Once you understand the strategies insurance companies use to challenge executive long term disability (鈥淟TD鈥�) claims, the next step is protecting yourself against them. Executives face unique vulnerabilities in this process: your income is higher, your job responsibilities are complex, and insurers know that denying your claim saves them significant money. That鈥檚 why a strategic and well-documented approach from the very beginning is essential.

Here are some key ways to help safeguard your LTD claim:

• • Define Your Occupation Accurately: Your insurer will not automatically understand what your executive position entails. You should clearly document your actual duties, hours, and responsibilities 鈥� not just your job title. Detailed job descriptions, performance reviews, and organizational charts can demonstrate the scope and complexity of your role. An experienced long term disability attorney can help frame this information in a way that reflects the true physical, cognitive, and leadership demands of your position.
  • Gather Comprehensive Medical Documentation: Many executive claims hinge on conditions that aren鈥檛 easily measured, like fatigue, pain, or cognitive decline. Your treating doctors should describe not only your diagnosis, but also how your symptoms interfere with your ability to perform essential job duties. A long term disability attorney can work with your physicians to ensure the documentation aligns with your policy鈥檚 requirements.
  • Anticipate Surveillance and Investigations: Be aware that insurers may monitor your social media or conduct video surveillance. Even limited or out-of-context activities can be misinterpreted. An attorney can prepare you for these tactics and advise on how to communicate and conduct yourself during your claim.
  • Be Cautious with Insurance Company Communications: Anything you say to your insurer can be used against you. Representatives may appear friendly but are trained to elicit statements that minimize your limitations. Having a knowledgeable attorney handle communications ensures your statements remain consistent, accurate, and aligned with your claim strategy.
  • Challenge Biased Exams and Reviews: If the insurer schedules an Independent Medical Examination (鈥淚ME鈥�), your attorney can prepare you for the process, identify potential bias, and respond effectively to unfavorable reports.
  • Maintain Consistency Across Records: Discrepancies between your claim forms, doctor鈥檚 notes, or daily activities can raise red flags for insurers. A disability attorney ensures your medical and occupational records tell a unified story of your impairment.

At Riemer Hess, we have decades of experience guiding executives through the LTD claims process. We understand how to translate your complex professional role into the terms insurers use to evaluate disability, and how to preempt the tactics they commonly use to deny benefits.

If you are considering filing a long term disability claim 鈥� or if your claim has already been denied or delayed 鈥� it鈥檚 in your best interest to speak with an experienced long term disability attorney as early as possible. The right legal guidance can make the difference between a denied claim and a secure financial future while you focus on your health.

How can an attorney help secure my long term disability benefits?

Filing a long term disability ("LTD") claim as an executive is not as straightforward as submitting medical records and waiting for approval. Insurance companies approach executive claims with skepticism, often using technicalities or incomplete information to deny benefits.

A knowledgeable long term disability attorney can make all the difference 鈥� ensuring your claim is presented strategically, accurately, and in full compliance with your policy鈥檚 terms.

Here鈥檚 how an experienced LTD attorney can help you protect your benefits and your professional reputation:

• • Accurately Define Your Occupation: One of the most common reasons executive claims are denied is because insurers misclassify the occupation. Your attorney will ensure the insurer understands the true cognitive, leadership, and stamina-based demands of your position 鈥� not just the physical tasks listed in generic labor data.

  • Develop Strong Medical and Vocational Evidence: Attorneys work directly with your treating doctors and vocational experts to provide detailed reports describing how your symptoms prevent you from performing your specific job duties. This includes connecting medical findings to the executive-level responsibilities your policy covers.

  • Anticipate and Counter Insurer Tactics: Insurers use strategies such as biased 鈥淚ndependent鈥� Medical Examinations, selective record reviews, and surveillance. An attorney can identify these tactics early and respond effectively, preventing them from undermining your claim.

  • Manage All Communications with the Insurer: Every conversation, form, or letter you submit can impact your claim. Your attorney handles these interactions for you, ensuring your responses are consistent, accurate, and strategically worded to support your eligibility for benefits.

  • Navigate Complex Policy Language: LTD policies are filled with ambiguous terms and limitations that can drastically affect your benefits 鈥� such as mental illness limitations, change-in-definition clauses, or residual disability provisions. An attorney can interpret these terms, determine what evidence is needed, and ensure the insurer applies them correctly.

  • Appeal Denied Claims and Prepare for Litigation: If your claim is denied, your attorney can handle the appeal process, gathering additional medical and occupational evidence and crafting the strongest possible argument for reinstatement. In ERISA-governed claims, this appeal stage is especially critical, as it鈥檚 often your last chance to introduce new evidence before court review.

Having a seasoned long term disability attorney on your side gives you a decisive advantage. At Riemer Hess, we have helped countless executives and high-level professionals secure and maintain their LTD benefits. We understand both the legal and practical realities of executive work 鈥� and how to convey the impact of your disability in terms the insurer cannot ignore.

If you are struggling to continue working or your insurer has questioned your eligibility, it鈥檚 never too early to seek legal guidance. The sooner you involve an attorney, the stronger your claim will be.