Latest California Headlines
All the headlines from our California Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Calif. Temporary Total Disability Rates For 2013 Announced
Jun 14 2012 // The minimum and maximum temporary total disability rates for 2013 will increase on Jan. 1, 2013, the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations said on Thursday. The minimum TTD rate will increase to $160 and the maximum...
West Drought Conditions Make For ‘Tragically Historic’ Wildfire Season
Jun 13 2012 // In what could be shaping up to be one of the worst wildfire seasons in recent memory, insurers are scrambling to deal with the aftermath of several massive wildfires in the region – and they’re preparing people for...
Collateral Reform Passes Conn.; Calif. Up Next
Jun 13 2012 // Connecticut is the latest state to liberalize collateral requirements for foreign-based reinsurers, and California could be next on the list, after a similar bill passed that state’s Senate. Connecticut Gov. Dannel...
Climate Change Will Alter Risks of Wildfire Worldwide: Study
Jun 12 2012 // Climate change is widely expected to disrupt future fire patterns around the world, with some regions, such as the western United States, seeing more frequent fires within the next 30 years, according to climate scientists...
Beecher Carlson Appoints Stevens as Senior VP in California
Jun 12 2012 // Atlanta-based insurance broker Beecher Carlson has named Stacy Stevens as senior vice president. In this role, she will be responsible for leading the account management of national, complex commercial property/casualty...
Delaware Chancery Court Allows Derivative Suit Vs. Botox Directors
Jun 12 2012 // Directors of Allergan Inc. must face a lawsuit over $600 million in fines the company paid for misbranding its Botox treatment to smooth out wrinkles, a Delaware judge ruled, in a decision that could affect securities...
Southern Calif. Agents Nabbed In Million Dollar Ponzi Scheme
Jun 8 2012 // A current and a former insurance agent from Southern California have been arrested for allegedly running a million-dollar Ponzi scheme. Edwin Salazar, 34, of Downey, and Michael Zuniga, 41, of Fullerton have each been...
AIG to Pay $15.6 M to Calif. for Underreporting Workers’ Comp Payments
Jun 8 2012 // American International Group Inc. will pay California $15.6 million in penalties to settle allegations that its insurance companies underreported workers’ compensation premiums over several decades. The sum is part...
Workers’ Comp Market Injured But Still Standing
Jun 8 2012 // Like the economy, the workers’ compensation market has suffered in recent years. Results for 2011 were no better than 2010. The good news: results for the workers’ comp market were not worse either. The...
C.M. Meiers Preliminary Injunction Decided, But Far From Over
Jun 7 2012 // A judge has rejected a request for a preliminary injunction in the case of a bankrupt Southern California insurance agency following a long, accusation-fueled legal battle between the former and current owners of the...
New Lawsuit For Southern California Officer In Homeless Death Case
Jun 7 2012 // A disabled man has filed a lawsuit against Fullerton police, saying he was abused by the same officer charged in the beating death of a homeless man. The Orange County Register reported Tuesday that Mark Edwin Walker says...
Judge Decides for Defendants in C.M. Meiers Preliminary Injunction
Jun 6 2012 // Editor’s Note: See C.M. Meiers Preliminary Injunction Decided, But Far From Over for updates, more of the judge’s opinion, comments from attorneys, as well as legal analysis. A judge has rejected a request for...
Study: Spinal Implant Loophole Costs Calif. Workers’ Comp $67M
Jun 6 2012 // Workers’ compensation medical costs in California were boosted by nearly $67.5 million in 2010 due to loophole in the law that allows double billing for surgical implants, according to a study released on Wednesday...
C.M. Meiers Defendants File ‘Scorched Earth’ Countersuit
Jun 5 2012 // Editor’s note: For more read an updated story on this case, “C.M. Meiers Preliminary Injunction Decided, But Far From Over“ Expect the allegation-laden battle between the new and old owners of bankrupt...
Crop Damage in Central California Tops $79M
Jun 4 2012 // San Joaquin Valley’s crop damage estimate from a hail storm in April has reached more than $79 million. The Fresno Bee reported that Kings County, among the hardest hit areas of the region, recently increased its...
People – West
Jun 4 2012 // Irvine, Calif.-based SullivanCurtisMonroe named Shawn Kraatz as executive vice president in its Irvine office. His primary responsibilities at SCM will include commercial sales management and marketplace leadership. Kraatz...
How States Rank Injury Prevention
Jun 4 2012 // When it comes to preventing injury, California and New York states rank the highest. On a set of 10 steps states can take to prevent injuries, 24 states scored a five or lower. Two states, California and New York, received...
Safety Inspections Don’t Hurt Businesses: Study
Jun 4 2012 // Random inspections of U.S. industrial workplaces lower the risk of workers being injured on the job and have no measurable negative effect on the companies inspected, according to a study in the journal Science. Companies...
Study: Drug Testing Driving Calif. Workers’ Comp Costs
Jun 4 2012 // It’s no surprise that pharmaceuticals are one of the leading drivers of workers’ compensation costs in California, but a study issued late last month shows the skyrocketing cost of drug testing is becoming a...
Poms & Associates Adds Three in Southern California
Jun 1 2012 // Los Angeles, Calif.-based Poms & Associates Insurance Brokers Inc. named Chris Poveromo branch manager and senior vice president of property/casualty. Additionally, the firm named Mark Ulrich senior Vice president of...
