Latest Legislation Headlines
All the headlines from our Legislation Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Alabama Department of Insurance Re-Accredited by NAIC
Sep 19 2016 // The Alabama Department of Insurance (ALDOI) announced Aug. 31 that it has been re-accredited by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) for a 5-year term. The ALDOI received its first NAIC accreditation...
State Oversight of Thrill Rides Questioned After Recent Accidents
Sep 19 2016 // In some parts of the U.S., the thrill rides that hurl kids upside down, whirl them around or send them shooting down slides are checked out by state inspectors before customers climb on. But in other places, they are not...
Court Rules Massachusetts Law Applies in Rhode Island Contamination Suit
Sep 19 2016 // The Massachusetts Appeals Court has ruled that Massachusetts law should apply in deciding whether Narragansett Electric Co. (NEC), a Rhode Island-based utilities provider, is entitled to insurance coverage for...
New Jersey Supreme Court Rules Paralyzed Waterpark Visitor Can Proceed with Gross Negligence Suit
Sep 19 2016 // A New Jersey waterpark visitor who was partially paralyzed in a 2010 accident while on a ride that simulates surfing can proceed with a lawsuit, the state Supreme Court ruled. Roy Steinberg and his wife claim employees at...
Future Workers’ Compensation Profitability Faces Obstacles
Sep 19 2016 // Workers’ compensation, the largest product segment in the U.S. commercial lines insurance sector, has experienced a recent profit renaissance, moving to a significant underwriting profit in 2015. However, long-term...
Missouri Lawmakers Override Veto, Loosen Gun Laws
Sep 16 2016 // Missouri’s Republican-led Legislature has used its supermajority to significantly loosen the state’s gun laws and potentially tighten its voting requirements as lawmakers overrode numerous vetoes of Democratic...
Judge Rules Uber Can Settle with Customers over Tips
Sep 16 2016 // Uber Technologies Inc. won permission to settle claims it misled consumers by charging them a 20 percent “gratuity” even though drivers got only about half of it. U.S. District Judge Edward Chen in San...
Tennessee Lawmakers Repeal Underage DUI Law to Avoid $60M Penalty
Sep 16 2016 // Tennessee lawmakers on Wednesday repealed an underage drunken driving law that threatened to cost the state $60 million in road money by running afoul of federal zero-tolerance standards. The Senate passed the measure...
Al-Jazeera TV Asks Judge to Toss Major League Baseball Players’ Defamation Claim
Sep 15 2016 // Al-Jazeera America is asking a judge to dismiss defamation lawsuits filed by two Major League Baseball players over statements made in the broadcaster’s documentary about performance-enhancing drugs in...
New York Proposes ‘Flexible’ Cybersecurity Regulation for Insurers, Banks
Sep 15 2016 // The New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS) has proposed cybersecurity regulation for financial services companies that aims to protect New York state’s financial services industry from an increasing...
Oklahoma Supreme Court Rules Workers’ Comp Opt-Out Unconstitutional
Sep 14 2016 // The Oklahoma Supreme Court handed a major setback to proponents of workers’ compensation alternatives on Sept. 13, ruling that the state’s Opt Out Act is unconstitutional. The high court’s 7-2 ruling came...
Is No-Fault Auto Insurance to Blame for High Rates, Fraud?
Sep 13 2016 // A dozen states still use no-fault auto insurance to cover the medical expenses of crash victims. Michigan House members returned to work last week to decide whether they’ll give the state’s motorists a break on...
Lawmakers Call for U.S. Effort to Thwart Vehicle Hacking
Sep 13 2016 // Four Republican members of Congress on Monday urged U.S. auto safety regulators to convene an industry-wide effort to prevent possible attacks on computer systems in vehicles. The lawmakers addressed their concerns in a...
Judge Dismisses Lawsuit by Athletes against University of Oregon
Sep 12 2016 // A federal judge has dismissed lawsuits filed by three former University of Oregon basketball players who were suspended after being accused of an off-campus sexual assault. The Register Guard reported that U.S. District...
Casualty Losses and Cyber, Crop, Property Demand Driving Reinsurance Growth: Aon
Sep 12 2016 // Reinsurance demand has increased over the past 18 months, with the cession ratio across the global property/casualty insurance industry registering a small rise for the first time in several years, and the trend expected...
Judge Warns Lawyers: You Pay If Claims Found Frivolous
Sep 12 2016 // Lawyers who defend companies in product liability cases are celebrating an unusual order by a federal judge in Columbus, Georgia. In it, he told attorneys for the other side—the ones who represent injured...
Tennessee to Address New Underage DUI Law in Special Session
Sep 12 2016 // Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam’s administration is looking to turn back the clock on an underage drunken driving law that threatened to cost Tennessee $60 million in federal road money. The law that went into effect in...
Obama Expected to Veto Bill Allowing 9/11 Suits Against Saudis
Sep 11 2016 // The unopposed House vote Friday to allow families of Sept. 11 victims to sue Saudi Arabia begins a diplomatic nightmare for President Barack Obama. The legislation is sure to antagonize a key U.S. ally in the Middle East...
Court Smacks Down California Regulators Over Broker/Agent Ruling
Sep 9 2016 // An Orange County, California court has given the state’s Department of Insurance a stunning smack down in a long-running case about the “broker fees” charged by some insurance agents. The complicated case...
Judge Orders Nashville Police to Improve Availability of Accident Reports
Sep 9 2016 // A judge has ordered that the Metropolitan Nashville Police make accident reports available to inspection within three days of the end of the shift of the officer who created the report. The Davidson County Chancery Court...
