Latest Legislation Headlines
All the headlines from our Legislation Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Florida May Change Citizens’ Policyholder Assessments
Feb 28 2012 // Funding for the Florida’s state-run property insurer is likely to change as state lawmakers are looking to access the insurer’s total assessment base quicker and give it more time to collect funds in the event...
Surplus Lines Analysis: Multistate Clearinghouse Economics Don’t Work
Feb 27 2012 // Recent data from Florida indicate that the economics for a multistate surplus lines tax allocation clearinghouse are unworkable. There simply is not enough multistate surplus lines tax to support the cost of a...
Judge Awards Iphone User $850 In Throttling Case
Feb 27 2012 // When AT&T started slowing down the data service for his iPhone, Matt Spaccarelli, an unemployed truck driver and student, took the country’s largest telecommunications company to small claims court. And won. His...
Florida Lawmakers Split on Workers’ Comp Drug Dispensing; Rate Cut Possible
Feb 27 2012 // Florida lawmakers appear headed toward a stalemate over how to rein-in the cost of physician-dispensed workers’ compensation prescription drugs. In an effort to force a deal, Senate lawmakers are calling for a...
Alabama Judge Acquits Man in Australia Honeymoon Death
Feb 27 2012 // A judge on Thursday acquitted a man accused of drowning his newlywed wife during a honeymoon diving trip to Australia eight years ago, saying in an unusual ruling that prosecutors did not prove the man intentionally killed...
Kentucky Screenings of Miners Highlights Risk of Drug Use
Feb 27 2012 // More than 1,500 coal miners have tested positive for drug use since Kentucky began screenings six years ago, a state attorney told lawmakers, and he urged lawmakers to close legal loopholes that can allow miners who test...
West Virginia Judge OKs Settlement in Agent Orange Suit
Feb 27 2012 // A West Virginia judge has approved a settlement in a class-action lawsuit filed by residents who say that chemical manufacturer Monsanto burned dioxin wastes, polluting the area with unsafe levels of the chemical. The...
White House Internet Privacy Bill of Rights Met with Skepticism
Feb 27 2012 // The White House proposed last Thursday a “privacy bill of rights” that would give consumers more control over their data but relies heavily for now on voluntary commitments by Internet companies like Google...
Judge: BP, Anadarko, Transocean May Be Liable for Oil Pollution Claims
Feb 23 2012 // BP Plc and Anadarko Petroleum Corp. are liable and Transocean Ltd. may be liable for civil damages under federal pollution laws over the catastrophic 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill, a U.S. judge ruled. Wednesday’s...
Judge Strikes Down Washington Law Mandating Pharmacists Sell Contraception
Feb 23 2012 // A federal judge ruled on Wednesday that Washington state cannot require pharmacists to dispense emergency contraceptives if to do so violates their religious beliefs. U.S. District Judge Ronald B. Leighton declared the...
South Carolina’s Small Glass Shops Seek to Crack Giant Safelite’s Clout
Feb 23 2012 // How automotive glass repair companies are allowed to access glass claims has become a contentious issue in South Carolina where independent shops are trying to break a national company’s hold on the market. South...
Pennsylvania Christian College Sues Over Birth Control Regs
Feb 22 2012 // A Christian college in western Pennsylvania has sued the federal government saying regulations that require employers to offer birth control coverage that includes drugs that abort fertilized embryos are “directly at...
AIA’s Snyder Describes Korea Trade Pact as ‘Excellent Model’
Feb 22 2012 // The long-awaited implementation of the Free Trade Pact between the Republic of Korea, or South Korea, and the U.S. (KORUS) is scheduled to go into effect on March 15. The date will see the conclusion of negotiations that...
Iowa Judge Orders California Porn Site to Pay $4M In Piracy Case
Feb 22 2012 // A judge has ordered the operators of a popular pornographic website to pay $4 million for copyright infringement to an Iowa-based adult film company – a ruling that should serve as a deterrent to others who pirate...
Florida Senate Leader Opposes Immunity for Lawmakers
Feb 22 2012 // The incoming Senate president is opposing a proposal that would allow state lawmakers to wrap themselves in absolute immunity from having to testify in lawsuits. The House Judiciary Committee cleared a Republican bill (PCB...
Atypical P/C Executive: Chartis CEO Hancock on Fear, Regulation, Science and More
Feb 22 2012 // The keynote speaker told the professional liability insurance underwriters that regulation is not the enemy of business growth, the plaintiffs’ bar is their ally, deleveraging of financial institutions is a good...
Missouri Senate Passes Bill Expanding Workers’ Comp to Diseases
Feb 21 2012 // In a move that Republicans contend will make Missouri more attractive to businesses, the state Senate has approved legislation to expand the workers’ compensation program. The measure, SB572, approved with a largely...
Texas 2011 Legislative Update
Feb 21 2012 // Ambulance-chasing attorneys, frivolous lawsuit filings and contractual indemnification clauses were all subjects addressed by the Texas 2011 legislative session. Joanna Salinas, partner and manager of the Austin-based law...
Connecticut Seeks to Recapture Role as Insurance Capital
Feb 21 2012 // Hartford is trying to recapture its status as the nation’s insurance capital by drawing in a specialized insurance business that is finding a home elsewhere. Since the 18th century, Hartford — home to Aetna...
Florida Lawmakers Still Balk at Raising Homeowners’ Premiums for Cat Fund
Feb 21 2012 // State lawmakers have gambled with their constituents’ money for years when it comes to dealing with Florida’s property insurance issues. But now, many top industry analysts suggest, the odds may be turning...
