Almost two years ago I blogged about a federal district court decision from Alabama that imposed a penalty of $37,950 ($75 a day) on an employer that failed to provide a COBRA notice for a dental plan to a former employee. With attorneys’ fees and costs, the employer owed a total of $83,063.45. That case has now been affirmed by the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals. (The wheels of justice can turn slowly at times.) In the process of that affirmance, the court of appeals sent back to the district court the question of whether the employer might owe an additional $2,460.67 in costs.

The appeals court decision broke no new ground on the law of COBRA violations. I mention the case so that readers will know what happened at the appeals court level. (The case also addressed Family & Medical Leave Act (FMLA) issues and could be interesting reading for employers covered under that law.)