CMS UNVEILS WEBSITE AND CALL CENTER FOR EXCHANGES

On June 24, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) unveiled a revised HealthCare.gov website and a 24-hour-a-day consumer call center to provide information on the “Health Insurance Marketplace,” commonly referred to as state insurance exchanges. The exchanges, created under the Affordable Care Act, are to begin providing coverage on January 1, 2014. Open enrollment is scheduled to begin on October 1, 2013, notwithstanding widespread skepticism. …
Read More Healthcare Update: CMS Unveils Website and Call Center for Exchanges; CMS Releases Proposed Rule on Exchange Operation

On June 20, 2013, the New York legislature passed Bills A07807A/S04329-A (the “Amendments”). The purpose of the Amendments is to adopt recent changes to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ (“NAIC”) Model Holding Company System Regulatory Act (the “Model Act”). Earlier this year, the New York Department of Financial Services (“DFS”) adopted several amendments to Insurance Regulation 52 to conform with these changes to the Model Act. …
Read More New York Passes Statutory Amendments to Holding Company Act

July 18, 2013
Edwards Wildman Palmer LLP
750 Lexington Avenue, 8th Floor (corner of 59th Street)
New York, New York

Edwards Wildman Speakers: Laura N. Wilkinson, Deming E. Sherman …
Read More Ethics, Conduct and Communications Under the Rules of Professional Conduct

Following risk management association Airmic’s publication of a guide and model wording on 11 June 2013, with the aim of encouraging insurers to remove basis clauses from their policies, the Lloyd’s Market Association (LMA) has expressed support for the idea. Basis clauses, no longer permitted in consumer insurance contracts, have the effect of voiding the policy if the proposal form is inaccurate in any way, even if this is unintentional and does not affect the risk. …
Read More UK: LMA Supports Proposals to Remove Basis Clauses

Sun Life Financial Inc. announced on June 21, 2013 that it expects the review by the New York Department of Financial Services (DFS) of investments by private equity firms in reinsurers of annuities to delay past June 30, 2013 Sun Life’s sale of its U.S. annuity business to Delaware Life Holdings, LLC, a company owned by shareholders of Guggenheim Partners. Click here for a link to Sun Life’s press release. …
Read More New York DFS Review of Private Equity Investments Delays Sun Life Transaction

In the conjoined cases of Beijing Jianlong Heavy Industry Group v Golden Ocean Group and Beijing Jianlong Heavy Industry Group v Ship Finance International Ltd [2013] EWHC 1063, Judge Mackie QC held that arbitration clauses which were included in certain guarantee contracts were enforceable, even if the guarantees themselves might be unenforceable. …
Read More UK: English High Court Rules on Separability of Arbitration Agreements

As we previously reported here, the National Association of Registered Agents and Brokers Reform Act of 2013 (S. 534) was introduced to the Senate and the House earlier this year and, if passed into law, would establish the National Association of Registered Agents and Brokers (“NARAB”), a nonprofit corporation to license nonresident agents and brokers. The main benefit of NARAB would be that agents and brokers who are already licensed in one state could join NARAB and become licensed in all other states. …
Read More National Association of Registered Agents and Brokers Reform Act Advances on Capitol Hill

In Bank Mellat v Her Majesty’s Treasury (No. 2) [2013] UKSC 39, the UK Supreme Court, by a majority of 5 to 4, allowed an appeal by Bank Mellat, a major Iranian commercial bank, from a Court of Appeal decision in relation to a direction made by the UK Treasury under Schedule 7 of the Counter-Terrorism Act 2008 preventing persons operating in the financial sector from having any commercial dealings with the bank. …
Read More UK: UK Direction Against Major Iranian Bank, Bank Mellat, Ruled Unlawful by Supreme Court

The FCA has issued its first fine for breaches of client asset rules under the new penalty regime. The fine was imposed on 11 June 2013 on retail investment and capital markets firm Xcap Securities PLC for failing to arrange adequate protection for clients’ assets. In particular, Xcap were found to have failed to segregate client and firm money properly, to maintain accurate records of client money and assets, and to carry out accurate client money reconciliations. …
Read More FCA Issues First Fine for Client Asset Breaches Under New Penalty Regime

In his first major speech as Chairman of the FCA, John Griffith-Jones told attendees at TheCityUK’s London seminar on 13 June how he felt that both firms and the regulator could change, and the positive effect that would have on the market. …
Read More FCA Chairman Outlines Areas for Change in Speech to TheCityUK Seminar