South Dakota is one of three U.S. jurisdictions whose countersignature laws are being challenged in court by the Washington, D.C.-based Council of Insurance Agents and Brokers. The statutes preclude out-of-state insurance brokers from conducting business in their jurisdictions without the countersignature of a resident agent. Lawsuits were filed in U.S. district courts in West Virginia and the U.S. Virgin Islands as well. Each suit argues that that jurisdiction’s countersignature provisions violate the privilege and immunities clause of the U.S. Constitution. Last year, the Council successfully challenged the countersignature requirements in Florida and has now brought legal action in every state that has the controversial countersignature requirement on the books.
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