Jurisdictions

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On April 5, 2011, the U.S. Senate approved legislation that would repeal the expanded IRS Form 1099 information-reporting requirements imposed by Section 9006 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (“PPACA”).  Having also been approved by the U.S. House of Representatives on March 3, 2011, the bill is now expected to be signed into law by President Barack Obama. …
Read More 1099 Repeal Requirement: On Its Way to the White House

Acting Pennsylvania Commissioner, Michael Consedine, announced that Randy Rohrbaugh has been named Executive Deputy Insurance Commissioner.  Mr. Rohrbaugh’s duties will include helping the Commissioner in the daily activities of the running the Pennsylvania Insurance Department.  The Executive Deputy Commissioner will also oversea all operational day to day issues. …
Read More Pennsylvania Executive Deputy Commissioner Named

The Rhode Island Department of Business Regulation and Office of the Health Insurance Commissioner recently proposed new regulations (the “Proposed Regulations”) regarding the issuance of insurance policies to Rhode Island trusts and associations. If promulgated, the Proposed Regulations could have a significant impact on insurers and brokers that issue or renew insurance policies to trusts and associations in Rhode Island, as well as the trustees responsible for maintaining such trusts. …
Read More Client Advisory – Rhode Island Agencies Propose Regulations Imposing Additional Requirements on Group Policies Issued to Rhode Island Trusts and Associations

Natural gas obtained from shale formations using the controversial method of hydraulic fracturing (“hydrofracking”) have a higher greenhouse gas footprint than when obtained from conventional methods, according to a study recently released by the academic journal Climate Change Letters. …
Read More Hydrofracking: Study Finds “Shale Gas” May Have Greater GHG Footprint Than Coal

A recent decision of the California Supreme Court is sending a chill through a common retail practice: requesting a customer’s ZIP code during a credit card transaction for research and marketing purposes. The decision, in Pineda v. Williams-Sonoma Stores, Inc., found that the practice of collecting ZIP codes violates a California statute, the Song-Beverly Credit Card Act, which forbids businesses from requesting “personal identification information” during a credit card transaction. …
Read More Client Advisory – California Supreme Court’s Zip Code Decision Exposes Retailers to New Litigation Hazard, Statutory Fines

Forecasters at Colorado State University (“CSU”) predict that the 2011 Atlantic hurricane season will be above average and will have about nine hurricanes, 16 named storms, 80 named storm days, 35 hurricane days, and 10 major hurricane days.  CSU also predicts that nine of the 16 named storms will turn into hurricanes, with five of them developing into major hurricanes of Category 3 or higher on the five-step Saffir/Simpson. …
Read More Above Average Hurricane Season Predicted for 2011

Japan is planning to raise the nuclear alert level at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant to a maximum seven (“Major Event”) on the International Nuclear and Radiological Event Scale (INES), putting this emergency on a par with the 1986 Chernobyl disaster. …
Read More Japan Raises Nuclear Alert Level Not Seen Since Chernobyl

Plaintiffs Trenwick America Reinsurance Corporation and Unum Life Insurance Company of America purchased retrocessional coverage from defendant IRC Re Limited.  The retrocession agreements did not contain follow the fortunes or follow the settlements clauses, and after a dispute arose under the agreements, the parties litigated (among other things) whether the follow the fortunes or follow the settlements doctrine applied. …
Read More Relying Upon Testimony of Expert Witnesses, Massachusetts Federal Court Finds That Follow the Fortunes Governs Reinsurance Relationship, Even Where Agreements are Silent

Earlier this month, Alterra Capital Holdings Ltd. and Stone Point Capital LLC announced that they formed a sidecar named New Point IV, both agreeing to commit up to $100 million. According to the press release, New Point IV was created due to “the recent series of global catastrophic events . . reducing the capital supporting the international property catastrophe reinsurance market . . . .” …
Read More Formation of Alterra/Stone Point Side Car May Mark Start of a Trend