Latest USA Headlines
All the headlines from our USA Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Federal Judge: Virginia’s Gay-Marriage Ban Unconstitutional
Feb 14 2014 // Virginia’s ban on gay marriage was ruled unconstitutional by a federal judge who said it violated the equal-protection rights of the state’s residents including couples married legally in other states. The...
Federal Appeals Court: U.S. Has Jurisdiction in Chinese Drywall Suits
Feb 13 2014 // U.S. courts have jurisdiction over claims that a Chinese drywall company’s defective product wrecked homes, and a company that failed to show up in court must pay $2.7 million for damage to seven Virginia couples, a...
Storm Dumps More Snow on Northeast After Icing Southeast for 2 Days
Feb 13 2014 // The winter storm that cut electricity to more than half a million customers across the South and grounded 10,000 flights this week turned its power on the U.S. Northeast, bringing heavy snow from Virginia to Maine. In...
Federal Judge Orders Kentucky to Recognize Out-of-State Gay Marriages
Feb 13 2014 // Kentucky was ordered by a federal judge to recognize same-sex marriages made in other states as similar challenges were filed in Louisiana and Missouri, escalating litigation over gay rights in courts nationwide. U.S....
U.S. Submits 2015 Global Climate Wishlist to United Nations
Feb 13 2014 // The United States on Wednesday submitted to the United Nations its vision for a new international climate agreement that is “built to last,” outlining what it thinks should be the main elements of a climate...
BP Moves Ahead with Medical Payments Under $9.2B Oil Spill Settlement
Feb 13 2014 // BP Plc. won the right to move ahead with implementing the medical-benefits portion of its $9.2 billion settlement of oil spill claims with Gulf Coast residents after an appeals court dismissed the remaining plaintiffs at...
States’ Rules Complicate Efforts to Enact Uniform Data Security Law
Feb 12 2014 // Data thefts at U.S. retailers have rekindled enthusiasm in Congress for a single federal law on how customers should be notified about such breaches, but those efforts face the same roadblock as in the past: dozens of...
Garlock Ruling Could Shift Asbestos Litigation in Manufacturers’ Favor
Feb 12 2014 // A judge who found what he called a “startling pattern” of abuse by plaintiffs’ lawyers may have shifted the landscape of asbestos litigation with a ruling in favor of manufacturers. In a decree last...
Oklahoma, Texas Had Costliest Natural Disasters in 2013: Hartwig
Feb 11 2014 // The Oklahoma tornadoes of May 2013 not only caused significant loss of life but also contributed to its designation last year as the costliest state for natural disaster related insurance payouts, according to the...
Baby Boomers Give Up, Drop Out of U.S. Labor Force
Feb 11 2014 // When Robin McLane’s generation hit public schools in the 1950s, there were never enough classrooms or teachers to accommodate the bulge, she said. So she’s not surprised about the latest shock that boomers are...
Atlas General Insurance Services, LLC Announces New Specialty Programs Division
Feb 11 2014 // San Diego, Calif. (Feb. 11, 2014) – Atlas General Insurance Services, LLC, a national multi-line program manager, is pleased to announce the formation of its new division, Atlas Specialty Programs. This new division will...
P/C Insurers’ Net Income Up 60%, Combined Ratio at 97.6 for 2013: A.M. Best
Feb 10 2014 // A relatively quiet year for catastrophes helped the U.S. property/casualty industry achieved an underwriting profit for the first time in four years, according to A.M. Best. The industry managed its way to a nearly 60...
Catlin Group Increases Net Income to $392 Million in 2013
Feb 10 2014 // The Bermuda-based, London headquartered, Catlin Group announced very good financial results for the year ended December 31, 2013, with a 27 percent increase in profit before tax to $432 million, compared to $339 million in...
Court Dismisses Ex-AIG CEO Greenberg’s Bailout Lawsuit Against New York Fed
Feb 10 2014 // A federal appeals court upheld the dismissal of a lawsuit by former American International Group Inc. CEO Maurice “Hank” Greenberg accusing the Federal Reserve Bank of New York of unlawfully bailing out the...
Securities Class Actions Up 9% in 2013, But Below Average
Feb 10 2014 // Plaintiffs filed 166 new federal securities class actions in 2013, a 9 percent increase over 2012. However, the 2013 total is 13 percent below the average from 1997 to 2012, despite a second-half surge. The slump in...
Texas-Based MHBT Recognized as Top Performing U.S. Insurance Brokerage
Feb 10 2014 // MHBT Inc., headquartered in Dallas, Texas, was recently recognized as the “Top Performing Agency” in the country in its revenue category in a report by the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America...
Commercial Insurance Markets Looking Favorable for Buyers in 2014: Marsh
Feb 7 2014 // The ample capacity and competition that helped temper firming of U.S. commercial insurance rates in 2013 is expected to continue into 2014, unless catastrophe losses turn out higher than expected, according to a report by...
California Psychologist Sentenced In Workers’ Comp Fraud
Feb 6 2014 // A psychologist apologized Tuesday in a Los Angeles court for defrauding the federal government with inflated and fraudulent workers’ compensation claims. Dr. Arnold P. Nerenberg of Whittier said Tuesday he was...
Snowy, Cold January Was Deadly and Costly: Aon
Feb 6 2014 // The various winter storms that brought snow and bitter cold to the United States in January took more than 50 lives and are expected to result in direct economic losses of about $3.5 billion and insured losses of more than...
Allstate Sees No Need for Big Homeowners Rate Increases
Feb 6 2014 // Allstate Corp. aims to grow its share of the U.S. home and auto insurance markets without the need for “abnormally large” rate increases, its CEO said, after the company’s profit more than doubled in the...
