The Solvency Modernization Initiative (E) Task Force – Group Solvency Issues Working Group met on Sunday morning at the 2013 Summer Meeting of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) in Indianapolis, to discuss the status of the discussions with the International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS) and the Financial Stability Board (FSB). …
Read More NAIC Summer Meeting Update: Solvency Modernization Initiative Task Force – Group Solvency Issues Working Group

The Producer Licensing (EX) Working Group met on Sunday morning at the 2013 Summer Meeting of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) in Indianapolis, IN to discuss the recommendations it will make at the Producer Licensing (EX) Task Force meeting, which will be held on Sunday afternoon. …
Read More NAIC Summer Meeting Update: Producer Licensing (EX) Working Group

The Financial Regulation Standards and Accreditation (F) Committee met on Saturday afternoon at the 2013 Summer Meeting of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) in Indianapolis, IN.
Read More NAIC Summer Meeting Update: Financial Regulation Standards and Accreditation (F) Committee

The charter for the Federal Advisory Committee on Insurance (FACI), which had expired, has been renewed for two years. FACI provides advice to the Federal Insurance Office. Based on conversations with U.S. Department of Treasury officials, FACI expects the official notice to be published in the Federal Register later this month. …
Read More FIO/FSOC Update as of August 20, 2013

In the case of Amlin Corporate Member Limited & Ors v Oriental Assurance Corporation [2013] EWHC 2380 (Comm), (we have previously reported on related proceedings here and here) the Claimant reinsurers sought a declaration that a warranty in the reinsurance contract had been breached by an insured vessel sailing despite a storm warning having been issued at the port of sailing and on part of the route. …
Read More London: Breach of Warranty Allowed Reinsurers to Avoid Reinsurance Contract

On Friday, the Massachusetts Appeals Court handed down its decision in Rivera v. Commerce Insurance Company, No. 12-P-483 (Aug. 16, 2013). The insurance industry should take note of this unfair claim settlement practices case because the court determined that Commerce Insurance Company was liable for the plaintiffs’ tort-related litigation expenses following what was determined to be a bad-faith and unreasonable settlement offer, and proceeded to note precisely what constituted “tort-related litigation expenses.” A copy of the decision is available through the court’s website. …
Read More Massachusetts Appeals Court Affirms Insurer’s Liability For Tort-Related Litigation Expenses In Unfair Claim Settlement Practices Case

In a decision that has implications for reinsurance, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court last week decided that the Federal Arbitration Act preempts the Massachusetts Arbitration Act where the relevant contract involves interstate commerce. The decision is McInnes v. LPL Financial, LLC, et al., No. SJC-11356 (Aug. 12, 2013), and is available at the court’s website. …
Read More Massachusetts High Court Rules That Federal Arbitration Act Applies to Contracts Involving Interstate Commerce

Following a recent government victory in U.S. District Court in Texas, the captive insurance company industry stands generally on alert, viewing this case as a sign of a perceived increase in focus by the Internal Revenue Service on captive insurance companies. …
Read More Increased IRS Scrutiny of Captive Insurance Arrangements