The Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act
("COBRA") became law on April 7, 1986. For most of its
nearly 35-year history, litigation involving COBRA has been
relatively quiet. Most COBRA claims are tag-alongs, added as an
afterthought to various sorts of discrimination claims, and a few
cases involving the definition of "gross misconduct"
(essentially the one narrow exception where an offer of COBRA
coverage is not required).
In the wake of the pandemic, this is changing. Recently, there
have been a number of cases filed (most filed as class actions)
involving largely technical violations of COBRA's notice
rules.
Most of the suits have originated in Florida, but at least one
is from New York. These cases each involve a former employee that
did not elect COBRA continuation coverage upon his/her termination
of employment. Each of the suits alleges that the COBRA notices
provided by the employers to the plaintiffs were deficient in some
respect. As a result
