Latest Legislation Headlines
All the headlines from our Legislation Topic Page, ordered by recency.
After Court Ruling, New Emergency Orders Issued to Stem Virus in Michigan
Oct 12 2020 // A week after Michigan’s Supreme Court ruled Gov. Gretchen Whitmer lacked the authority to act unilaterally to slow the spread of the coronavirus, the state health department issued its own emergency order keeping...
Judge Finds Strems Guilty of Misconduct; Advises 2-Year Suspension, Probation
Oct 12 2020 // After finding Florida attorney Scot Strems in violation of numerous rules regulated by The Florida Bar last month, the court-appointed referee overseeing his case has recommended a 24-month suspension followed by one year...
German Lawmakers Agree to Corporate Accounting Reforms After Wirecard Scandal
Oct 7 2020 // Germany’s coalition parties have agreed a package of reforms to financial and accounting rules aimed at avoiding another Wirecard scandal, a document seen by Reuters shows. Lawmakers launched a parliamentary inquiry...
Feds Fault Operator, Regulators in New York Limo Crash That Killed 20
Oct 6 2020 // State regulators repeatedly failed to properly oversee a poorly maintained stretch limousine with corroded brakes that hurtled down a hill at more than 100 mph and crashed in a ravine, killing 20 people, federal...
Top EU Court Rules Mass Spying on Phone, Internet Data Is Unlawful
Oct 6 2020 // The European Union’s top court ruled on Tuesday that unrestrained mass surveillance of phone and internet data is unlawful, in a move which could curb the powers of spying agencies in France and other EU...
South Carolina Passes Flood Insurance Law to Boost Private Market
Oct 6 2020 // The state of South Carolina is aiming to foster new flood insurance coverage options through the enactment of the South Carolina Private Flood Insurance Act. South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster signed the legislation,...
Judge Orders Cisco to Pay $1.9 Billion in Cybersecurity Patent Lawsuit
Oct 6 2020 // A U.S. judge on Monday ordered Cisco Systems Inc. to pay $1.9 billion to a Virginia company that accused it of copying its cybersecurity patents. U.S. District Judge Henry Morgan in Norfolk, Virginia, concluded after a...
Michigan Governor’s Coronavirus Powers Upended After Court Ruling
Oct 5 2020 // A 1945 law repeatedly used by Gov. Gretcher Whitmer to respond to the coronavirus pandemic was declared unconstitutional Friday by the Michigan Supreme Court, a striking decision that puts months of restrictions in...
Judge Tosses Case Over Texas Chemical Plant Fire During Harvey
Oct 5 2020 // A judge has dismissed the criminal case against a chemical manufacturer and one of its former employees over a fire at its plant near Houston during Hurricane Harvey, saying prosecutors failed to present sufficient...
Supreme Court Agrees to Hear Jurisdiction Question in Climate Damages Lawsuit
Oct 5 2020 // The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday agreed to hear an appeal by energy companies including BP PLC, Chevron Corp., Exxon Mobil Corp. and Royal Dutch Shell PLC contesting a lawsuit by the city of Baltimore seeking damages for...
5th Circuit Backs Plaintiffs in Insurer Interest Penalty Case
Oct 5 2020 // A Houston plaintiff’s attorney defeated State Farm Lloyd’s for the fourth time on the same issue, this time coming away with a federal appellate court ruling that policyholders don’t have to prove that...
Judges Nix Consolidating COVID Business Interruption Suits Against Big Insurers
Oct 4 2020 // A panel of federal judges has decided against consolidation of hundreds of lawsuits seeking coverage for coronavirus-related business interruption claims against major national insurers Travelers, The Hartford, Cincinnati...
Judge Blocks Trump ‘Secretive’ Commission Report on Police and Civil Justice
Oct 2 2020 // Before a U.S. federal judge on Thursday halted the work of a Trump administration law enforcement commission – saying it had violated public meetings laws – the panel had been warned about shutting out public...
Virus Restrictions on Businesses, Gatherings Lifted in Most Tennessee Counties
Oct 2 2020 // Businesses in 89 of Tennessee’s 95 counties will no longer have to adhere to social distancing guidelines, Gov. Bill Lee announced Tuesday, even though cases of COVID-19 in the state have been persistently high. The...
Judges Dismisses $18M in Liens Filed by California Medical Provider Convicted of Fraud
Oct 1 2020 // An administrative law judge in California has dismissed liens valued at $18 million filed by convicted medical provider Michael E. Barri, bringing to a close one of the earliest cases aimed at combatting fraud in...
Vermont Department of Economic Development Hires Nevins
Oct 1 2020 // The Vermont Department of Economic Development (DED) has hired Brittany Nevins as the new Captive Insurance Economic Development director. She replaces Ian Davis, Vermont’s former director of Financial...
Florida Attorney Behind Thousands of Insurer Lawsuits Violated 14 Bar Rules: Judge
Sep 30 2020 // Embattled Florida attorney Scot Strems, who, with his firm, has filed thousands of assignment of benefit and first party lawsuits against Florida property insurers over the last several years, has been found by a...
COVID-19 Legislative Session in Louisiana Began This Week
Sep 29 2020 // Only three months removed from their last gathering, Louisiana legislators returned Monday for a special session focused on the coronavirus outbreak, with deepening rifts between Gov. John Bel Edwards and Republican...
California Ban on Fracking by 2024 Criticized as Too Late
Sep 28 2020 // California Gov. Gavin Newsom moved Wednesday to end issuing new hydraulic fracturing permits by 2024, a delay criticized by many environmental groups but characterized as legally and politically realistic by...
Opinion: Missouri Appeals Court Ruling Shrinks Insurers’ Right to Intervene
Sep 28 2020 // The Western District of the Missouri Court of Appeals has again construed the effect of the 2017 amendments to Mo. Rev. Stat. § 537.065, which gave insurers a limited right to intervene and protect their interest when...
