Latest Legislation Headlines
All the headlines from our Legislation Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Ill. House Approves Driving Certificates for Illegal Immigrants
Mar 30 2007 // The Illinois House voted Wednesday to give illegal immigrants a way to drive legally on the state’s roads, a move supporters say will be controversial but should improve highway safety. Illinois police organizations...
Firm Releases Study of Possible La. ‘Catastrophe Fund’
Mar 30 2007 // A private firm has released its study of how Louisiana would operate a “catastrophe fund,” one of several ideas lawmakers are considering to help ease the state’s property insurance crisis. The study...
Fla. Considers Storm Supply Tax Break, New Claims Law Glitch
Mar 30 2007 // Flashlights, radios, tarps and other hurricane supplies would be tax free for 12 days at the beginning of hurricane season, under a measure the Florida House has under consideration. Floridians received a similar tax break...
Judge Rules Spitzer Suit May Continue; Liberty Mutual Not Giving Up Fight
Mar 30 2007 // Liberty Mutual has vowed to continue its court fight against charges begun by former New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer that it engaged in anti-competitive bid-rigging and broker compensation practices after a judge...
Revised Captive Laws in Effect in D.C.
Mar 30 2007 // Two changes to captive insurance laws passed by the Council of the District of Columbia went into effect on March 14, 2007. Supporters see the changes as giving captives more flexibility and making the District a more...
Tenn. House Leader Blames Republicans for Med Mal Failure
Mar 29 2007 // Tennessee House Judiciary Chairman Rob Briley on Tuesday said a compromise over medical malpractice lawsuits will not be passed because Senate Republican Leader Mark Norris reneged on part of the agreement. Briley,...
Consumer Groups Say Market Forces, Not Claims, Caused Med Mal Crisis
Mar 29 2007 // A consumer coalition has released a new study that disputes insurers’ contention that the most recent medical malpractice insurance crisis for doctors was caused by rising costs. The study, Stable Losses/Unstable...
Mass. Auto Report Urges Limited Price Competition; No Assigned Risk Change for Now
Mar 27 2007 // A special auto insurance study group appointed by Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick has recommended modest changes to introduce limited pricing competition while warning against a proposed overhaul of the state’s high...
Bipartisan Flood Insurance ‘Modernization’ Bill Boosts Borrowing, Maximum Limits
Mar 27 2007 // U.S. Reps. Judy Biggert, R-Ill., and Barney Frank, D-Mass., introduced bipartisan legislation to revamp the National Flood Insurance Program that boosts the program’s borrowing authority to $21.5 billion, increases...
A.M. Best Cites 15 P/C Insurers as Financially Impaired in 2006
Mar 27 2007 // Seventeen U.S. insurance companies became financially impaired in 2006, despite a respite for property/casualty insurers from two consecutive turbulent hurricane seasons and more diversified asset portfolios among...
Handle customer data with care – it’s the law
Mar 26 2007 // Insurance agents and brokers constantly deal with customers’ personal information. Yet many in the industry may not be aware of the legal requirements for handling or storing this information. How should agents and...
Court ruling indicates claims made policy language ambiguous
Mar 26 2007 // A recent San Diego Superior Court ruling serves as a potential warning to legal malpractice insurers to review policy language to ensure their claims made policies can’t be more broadly construed as occurrence...
As hedge fund industry matures, so do its liability risks
Mar 26 2007 // Hedge funds are exposed to increasing risks from regulators, market conditions and the public There are three things you can be sure will happen during your time on earth: death, taxes and plaintiff’s attorneys...
Judges fault Spitzer on case against Greenberg over charity funds
Mar 26 2007 // One of Eliot Spitzer’s more contentious cases from his years as attorney general in New York was criticized by a panel of retired judges who discounted his claims that insurance executive Maurice R....
Agents Hit U.S. Chamber Backing of Federal Insurance Regulation
Mar 26 2007 // As they prepare to converge on Washington, D.C. to meet with federal legislators, insurance agents are targeting a recent U.S. Chamber of Commerce endorsement of federal insurance regulation for criticism. The National...
Tenn. Compromise Medical Malpractice Measure Stalls
Mar 26 2007 // It’s been more than two weeks since Tennessee lawmakers vowed to press ahead with a compromise over medical malpractice lawsuits without support from health care lobbyists. The measure hasn’t advanced much...
La. lawmakers support overhaul of Citizens Insurance Company
Mar 26 2007 // Two Louisiana lawmakers said they support a plan to overhaul the state-backed insurance company by opening much of its business to bidding among private firms. Sen. James David Cain, chairman of the Senate Insurance...
News Currents
Mar 26 2007 // Lawsuit reform bills advance in Okla. Senate The Oklahoma Senate recently passed three key lawsuit reform measures, according to a Senate announcement. Senate Republican leaders said they are negotiating with Senate...
New Mexico passes regulatory modernization bill
Mar 26 2007 // The New Mexico legislature has passed a bill that would establish a file and use rate regulatory system for most personal lines of insurance. The Insurance Rate Regulation Law, SB 483, applies to all kinds and lines of...
The New Frontier
Mar 26 2007 // Information technology companies may explore the new frontier everyday, but do they know where their exposures lie? Will they be ready for the next big liability risk close encounter? “Owners and or creators of IT...
