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Several members of the U.S. House of Representatives sent a letter to Department of Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson on March 13, 2008, requesting the Department of Treasury provide clear regulations outlining the application of the Foreign Investment and National Security Act (“FINSA”) on foreign investment in domestically owned companies. 

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Read More House Representatives Request Clarifications to FINSA Application in Treasury Department Regulations

Insurance companies are often stakeholders in interpleader actions.  EAPD’s Vince Vitkowsky has recorded a podcast for a public policy group analyzing the issues presented by the pending U.S. Supreme Court case, Philippines v. Pimentel, which was argued on March 17, 2008. The case arises from an interpleader action commenced by Merrill Lynch concerning an account containing assets deposited by the late President of the Philippines, Ferdinand Marcos. 

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Read More Supreme Court Hears Argument in International Interpleader Action

The Canadian federal government has charged a panel of experts with investigating possibilities for significant securities regulation reform.  Notably, the panel has been asked to “develop a model common securities act,” according to a press release issued by the Honourable Jim Flaherty, the Canadian Minister of Finance. 

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Read More Canada Considers Nationwide Securities Regulation Reform

As previously reported here, on September 10, 2007,  the New Jersey legislature enacted P.L. 2007, c. 163 (S-1666/A-3038), which banned the use of step-down provisions.  Step-down provisions were included in motor vehicle liability insurance policies issued to businesses and implicated when an employee is not a “named insured” on the policy. 

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Read More Effective Date of New Jersey Ban on Step-Down Provisions

Oregon’s highest court recently found that a $20.7 million dollar punitive damages award in an insurance bad faith case, which was approximately sixteen times the actual damages awarded in the case, was excessive and likely unconstitutional. 

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Read More Oregon Supreme Court: Punitive Damages in Insurance Bad Faith Case Limited to Four Times Actual Damages

A Massachusetts state trial court recently ruled that, even though an insured’s contractual coverage claim against its insurer was time-barred, its claim for insurer bad faith could proceed under a separate statutory limitations period. 

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Read More Massachusetts State Court: Insured May Proceed With Bad Faith Claim Even Though Statute of Limitations On Breach of Contract Claim Has Run

A California federal court recently dismissed breach of contract and bad faith claims based upon certain excess insurers’ failure to fund a purportedly reasonable settlement, holding that an excess judgment or settlement is a prerequisite to such a claim. 

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Read More California Federal Court: Bad Faith and Breach of Duty to Settle Claim Against Excess Insurers Not Ripe Until Final Settlement Reached or Judgment Entered In Excess of Primary Policy Limits

On March 18, 2008, Stephanie Jensen, Brocade’s former Human Resources Director, was sentenced to four months in prison and three months in a halfway house and ordered to pay a $1.25 million fine based upon her December 2007 conviction on charges of conspiracy and falsifying corporate records related to stock option backdating. 

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Read More Brocade: Former Human Resources Director Sentenced On Backdating-Related Conviction