Latest USA Headlines
All the headlines from our USA Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Facebook to Pay $550M to Settle Biometric Privacy Violation Claims
Jan 30 2020 // In what the plaintiffs’ lawyers are calling the largest cash settlement ever resolving a privacy related lawsuit, Facebook has agreed to establish a fund of $550 million to pay Facebook users in Illinois claiming the...
Where Purdue Pharma-Sackler Legal Maters Stand Now
Jan 30 2020 // OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma LP and its controlling Sackler family have been negotiating with cities, counties and states on a proposed settlement worth an estimated $10 billion to resolve more than 2,600 lawsuits...
With Premiums Up Due to Accidents, Chemical, Refinery Plants Cut Back on Insurance
Jan 30 2020 // U.S. refineries and petrochemical plants are cutting back on insurance because several years of severe accidents have driven up the cost of coverage, industry and insurance sources said. With less insurance coverage for...
Brexit Day Is Finally Here; Now the Hard Part Begins: Opinion
Jan 30 2020 // London and Brussels are two hours apart by train but on Friday, the day the U.K. officially leaves the European Union, the two cities will feel worlds apart. The Brits are planning a Brexit celebration worthy of a...
Houston-Area Manufacturer to Pay $35K to Settle Sex Harassment, Retaliation Suit
Jan 30 2020 // A plastics manufacturer in the Houston area has agreed to settle a sexual harassment and retaliation lawsuit for $35,000. Element Plastics Mfg. LLC, based in Sugar Land, Texas, has settled the suit filed by the U.S. Equal...
Opioid Kickback Probe Cites OxyContin Maker Purdue Pharma: Reuters
Jan 29 2020 // OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma LP is the unnamed company that surfaced in criminal charging documents filed earlier this week in a probe of illegal kickbacks from drugmakers, according to people familiar with the...
How should insurance commissioners get the job?
Jan 29 2020 // WARNING: This is a long one. Buckle in. Insurance Journal recently published an article detailing what action the Florida legislature is planning to take this year related to insurance. One item in particular caught my...
Beazley Adds Sanches as Underwriter in Southern California
Jan 29 2020 // Specialist insurer Beazley has appointed Justin Sanches as an underwriter within the U.S. healthcare liability team. Sanches joins Beazley’s Los Angeles, Calif., office to underwrite a range of global miscellaneous...
9 States Criticize Google’s Street View $13M Privacy Settlement
Jan 28 2020 // Attorneys general from nine states urged a federal judge to toss out Google’s $13 million settlement of a class-action lawsuit blaming its Street View mapping technology for a massive violation of consumer...
Cyber Attacks in Europe, Middle East Could Be Work of Turkey-Sponsored Hackers
Jan 27 2020 // Sweeping cyber attacks targeting governments and other organizations in Europe and the Middle East are believed to be the work of hackers acting in the interests of the Turkish government, three senior Western security...
Australian Insurers Should Be Able to Withstand Mounting Bushfire Claims: AM Best
Jan 27 2020 // Australian insurers are well-capitalized and should be able to withstand losses from the 2019/2020 bushfire season, aided by strong capital positions and support from reinsurance partners, said AM Best. The ratings agency...
How China’s Coronavirus Will Test the U.S., Too: Opinion
Jan 27 2020 // As the Wuhan coronavirus spreads to America, it now seems quite possible the United States will face some considerable logistical challenges. Even if the virus turns out not to be very deadly, or mutates into a safer form,...
Internet Firms’ Liability Shield on Justice Department Meeting Agenda
Jan 27 2020 // The U.S. Justice Department is planning to hold a conference to discuss the future of a federal law which largely exempts online platforms from legal liability for the material their users post, sources familiar with the...
Study: Petrochemicals Boom Would Boost Greenhouse Gases
Jan 27 2020 // A multi-billion dollar boom in petrochemical plants proposed along the U.S. Gulf Coast could pump as much greenhouse gas into the air as 131 coal-fired power plants by 2030, according to a study released by University of...
U.S. Confirms 5 Cases of Coronavirus; 100 More Possible But Risk in U.S. Deemed Low
Jan 26 2020 // Five people in the United States, all of whom recently traveled from Wuhan, China, have been diagnosed with the new coronavirus, officials of the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Sunday. The count...
Workers’ Compensation Is Doing Well. Is It Time to Worry?
Jan 24 2020 // Although workers’ compensation results remain strong—and the line continues to outperform all other commercial insurance lines—worries about continued soft pricing and loss reserve levels for workers’...
Making Big Oil Pay for Climate Change May Be Impossible
Jan 24 2020 // Exxon Mobil dodged a bullet last month when a judge rejected a novel climate-change lawsuit brought by New York’s attorney general. The case began with a promise from state officials that there would be a historic...
Insured Losses from Australia’s Hailstorms Hit US$352.5 Million
Jan 24 2020 // The Insurance Council of Australia (ICA) has declared a catastrophe for damage caused by hailstorms that struck eastern Melbourne, the Australian Capital Territory and parts of New South Wales on Sunday and Monday (Jan....
Roundup Plaintiffs, Bayer in Talks to Settle Claims For $10 Billion
Jan 23 2020 // In an effort to settle tens of thousands of claims that Bayer AG’s Roundup weedkiller causes cancer, lawyers for some plaintiffs are discussing with the company deals that could lead to a total payout of about $10...
Lyft Hopes New Expert Council Improves Safety for Riders, Drivers
Jan 23 2020 // Lyft Inc is putting together a council of experts to advise the ride-hailing company on its safety initiatives for riders and drivers, it said in a blog post on Tuesday. The Safety Advisory Council will include...
