Latest Legislation Headlines
All the headlines from our Legislation Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Massachusetts Court Rules on Scope of Independent Contractor Exclusion
Sep 25 2012 // A Massachusetts court recently ruled in favor of insurer Lloyd’s in a dispute over a commercial property and general liability policy excluding coverage for independent contractors. The insured, a property...
White House Readies Executive Order on Cybersecurity
Sep 25 2012 // The White House is preparing to direct federal agencies to develop voluntary cybersecurity guidelines for owners of power, water and other critical infrastructure facilities, according to people who said they had seen...
Alabama Law on Car Locking Devices in DUI Cases Goes Into Effect
Sep 24 2012 // A new law requires that some people convicted of drunken driving install devices that prevent them from starting their vehicles if they have been drinking alcohol. The new law took effect Sept. 1 and requires the devices...
Judge Lets Wal-Mart Discrimination Case Proceed
Sep 24 2012 // A U.S. judge rejected Wal-Mart Stores Inc.’s request to dismiss a gender discrimination case filed in California, but said he would rule later about whether the women plaintiffs had enough evidence to be certified as...
China Eases Access to Insurance, Travel industries
Sep 24 2012 // China has eased restrictions on foreign companies in parts of its insurance, travel and delivery industries in a possible effort to reverse a slide in investment from abroad, an American business group said Friday. Some of...
Judges Tout Wikipedia in ‘Jet Ski’ Exclusion Ambiguity
Sep 24 2012 // A Utah Court of Appeals ruled the term “jet ski” to be ambiguous as an exclusion in a homeowners’ policy, and to back up its decision the court used as a reference the popular reference website Wikipedia,...
Workers’ Comp Changes Go Into Effect in Mississippi
Sep 24 2012 // Insurers and employers in Mississippi now have greater latitude to conduct alcohol and drug tests on employees following a workplace accident and to reduce benefits for workers with pre-existing conditions. Under new...
New National Parks’ Insurance Requirements Ignite Controversy
Sep 24 2012 // A National Parks Service (NPS) decision to hike their required insurance liability limits by 1,000 percent has some outfitters and guides, as well as their insurance providers, navigating the halls of Congress. The battle...
3 States Join Lawsuit Challenging Dodd-Frank Law
Sep 23 2012 // Three U.S. states have joined a lawsuit that challenges the constitutionality of the 2010 Dodd-Frank law that overhauled U.S. financial oversight and created the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The attorneys general...
Facebook IPO Lawsuits Likely to Be Heard by New York Judge
Sep 21 2012 // Facebook Inc. and most of its adversaries in a raft of lawsuits over its $16 billion initial public offering can agree on at least one thing: that the cases should be heard in a New York court. At a hearing on Thursday,...
Alabama Eases Senior Driver Discount Rules
Sep 21 2012 // Alabama senior citizens will have easier access to courses that can qualify them for automobile insurance premium credits under a new state law that allows them to take the courses online. Approved by state lawmakers...
Calif. Workers’ Comp Reform Law at ‘Halftime’
Sep 20 2012 // Editor’s Note: This is the first in a series of articles to look at California’s workers’ compensation reform law in detail and what must be done to implement that law by Jan. 1, 2013. When Gov. Jerry...
Iowa Judge: Texas Firm Must Pay Disabled Workers $1.4M
Sep 20 2012 // A Texas company that profited for decades by supplying mentally disabled workers to an Iowa turkey plant at wages of 41 cents per hour must pay the men $1.37 million in back wages, a federal judge has ruled. The judgment...
Pentagon Warns Private Computer Networks on Vulnerability to Cyber Attacks
Sep 20 2012 // Privately-owned U.S. computer networks remain vulnerable to cyber attacks, and many U.S. companies are not doing enough to protect them, Deputy U.S. Defense Secretary Ashton Carter said on Wednesday. “I hope this...
Bank Group Warns of Heightened Risk of Cyber Attacks
Sep 20 2012 // A financial services industry group warned U.S. banks, brokerages and insurers on Wednesday to be on heightened alert for cyber attacks after Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase experienced unexplained outages on their...
Calif. Workers’ Comp Reform Dominates Conference
Sep 19 2012 // Senate Bill 863, or the more popular usage “SB 863,” was the phrase at the beginning, end or middle of many-a-conversation during the California Workers’ Compensation & Risk Conference on...
Heightened Regulation Forcing Insurers to Focus on Modeling Risks: Conning
Sep 19 2012 // The growing level of activity among regulatory bodies and quasi-regulatory agencies focused on strengthening insurance solvency protection systems, particularly regarding increased risk capital and enhanced risk...
Aon Benfield Launches Updated Financial Analysis Tool – ReMetrica v6
Sep 18 2012 // Aon Benfield, the global reinsurance intermediary and capital advisor of Aon plc, announced the launch of version 6 of ReMetrica – its dynamic financial analysis tool. The bulletin said it would “reduce model size...
Alabama Officials Mull How to Share Oil Spill Penalty Money
Sep 18 2012 // Local communities should not hire lobbyists as Alabama tries to determine how to dole out at least $1 billion in penalty funds it expects to receive as a result of the 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, Alabama Gov....
Wyoming Lower Court to Reconsider Errant Golf Ball Lawsuit
Sep 17 2012 // A lawsuit filed by a golf tournament spectator who got whacked in the head by a golf ball is headed back for another round in court following a Wyoming Supreme Court ruling on Sept. 14. The court ruled 3-2 against...
