Latest Legislation Headlines
All the headlines from our Legislation Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Judge Fines Las Vegas Sands Corp. $25,000 in Termination Lawsuit
Sep 17 2012 // A Nevada judge has fined Las Vegas Sands Corp. $25,000, citing its failure to disclose important information in a lawsuit filed by a fired executive against the casino company. Clark County District Judge Elizabeth...
Mississippi Workers’ Comp Drug Testing, Benefits Changes Go Into Effect
Sep 17 2012 // Insurers and employers in Mississippi now have greater latitude to conduct alcohol and drug tests on employees following a workplace accident and reduce benefits for workers with pre-existing conditions. Those changes are...
Judge Hears Case Over Katrina Floodwall Failure
Sep 14 2012 // Alvin Livers lost his dream home when busted floodwalls unleashed a torrent of water that inundated his New Orleans neighborhood during Hurricane Katrina. Seven years later, Livers is one of several homeowners seeking to...
Penn. Commissioner: Washington Slow to Give Guidance on Healthcare Law
Sep 13 2012 // Testifying before Congress this week, Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner Michael Consedine offered a blistering critique of the way the federal government is coordinating the implementation of the Affordable Care Act. In...
Financial Firms Having to Adjust to Aggressive Consumer Protection Bureau
Sep 13 2012 // The new federal agency charged with enforcing consumer finance laws is emerging as an ambitious sheriff, taking on companies for deceptive fees and marketing and unmoved by protests that its tactics go too far. In the 14...
Farm Bill, Crop Insurance Reform May Be Stalled Until November
Sep 12 2012 // It may be November before the U.S. Congress completes the new $500 billion U.S. farm bill as lawmakers cannot agree on how much to cut support to farmers or food stamps for the poor. “We’re stuck at the...
IMF Says Benefits of Global Financial Reform Outweigh Costs
Sep 11 2012 // Tough new global financial rules will nudge up credit costs, but the slight drag they will place on major economies is worth it to achieve a more stable financial system, the International Monetary Fund said on Tuesday. In...
Judge Dismisses Velvet Underground Copyright Claim vs. Warhol Over Banana
Sep 11 2012 // A federal judge has dismissed part of The Velvet Underground’s lawsuit accusing the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts of violating its rights to an iconic banana image used on the rock band’s...
U.S. Treasury Sells $18 Billion of AIG Stock, Cuts Stake to 19%
Sep 10 2012 // The U.S. government cut its stake in American International Group Inc. to 19 percent on Monday, making a profit of $12.4 billion on the insurer’s crisis-era bailout and bringing the unpopular rescue closer to its...
Mississippi Court Rules Wal-Mart Not Liable in Gun Ammo Sale to Underage Shooter
Sep 10 2012 // If a store sells ammunition to an underage person who uses the bullets to kill someone, is the retailer responsible? Not necessarily, according to the Mississippi Supreme Court. The court ruled 5-4 this week in favor of...
Judge Lets Claim Against U.S. Over Stanford Ponzi Scheme Go Ahead
Sep 10 2012 // A lawsuit claiming U.S. securities regulators were negligent in failing to respond earlier to Allen Stanford’s $7 billion Ponzi scheme can go forward for now, a federal judge ruled in Florida on Friday. U.S. District...
Court Rules Employers Must Reassign Disabled Workers to Vacant Jobs
Sep 10 2012 // A federal appeals court has revived an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission lawsuit against United Airlines Inc., and said U.S. law generally requires employers to reassign disabled workers to vacant jobs for which they...
Dodd-Frank Provisions Still Hold Concern for Insurers
Sep 10 2012 // The Dodd-Frank Act of 2010 brought the most significant changes to financial regulation in the United States since the regulatory reform that followed the Great Depression. It represented a significant change in the...
Florida Streamlines Licensing for Agents, Adjusters
Sep 10 2012 // A new Florida law seeks to reduce the regulatory burden on agents and adjusters by consolidating some licenses and revamping the education classes they must take. Among the changes: insurance adjusters and agents operating...
Florida Names 7 Workers’ Comp Judges
Sep 10 2012 // Florida Governor Rick Scott has reappointed seven judges on the state’s court that handles workers’ compensation claims. Judge W. James Condry II, 54, of Orlando, has been a judge of Compensation Claims for the...
New National Parks’ Insurance Requirements Ignite Controversy
Sep 6 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...
Federal Judge: Delaware’s Secret Court Arbitration Is Unconstitutional
Sep 5 2012 // A Delaware law allowing Court of Chancery judges to preside over secret arbitration in business disputes is unconstitutional, a federal judge ruled last Thursday. The ruling came in a lawsuit filed by the Delaware...
Florida Lawmaker Questions Citizens Travel Expenses
Sep 5 2012 // A Florida state senator is demanding that executives of the state-backed property insurer be questioned after expense reports showed that they spent thousands of dollars on travel and related expenses. Florida Senator Mike...
AIA Comments on Latest IAIS Draft Rules on Global Insurance Supervision
Sep 5 2012 // The American Insurance Association has submitted comments in response to the International Association of Insurance Supervisors’ (IAIS) July 2, 2012 Public Consultation Document entitled “Working Draft of the...
Missouri Insurance Director to Chair Solvency Modernization Task Force
Sep 5 2012 // John M. Huff, director of the Missouri Department of Insurance, has been appointed chair of a national task force focusing on insurance regulation, the department announced. The Solvency Modernization Initiative was...
