Insurance premiums in Argentina rose 8.9% to 36.89 billion pesos ($9.35 billion) in the 12 months to the end of July, the insurance superintendency, or SSN, has reported. The total in July 2010 was 3.49 billion pesos ($885 million), an increase of 10.5% from June and 10.8% from July 2009. …
Read More Argentina: Insurance Premiums Up 8.9% in 12 Months to July 2010

In a judgment today, in the case of Akzo Nobel Chemicals Ltd and Akcros Chemicals Ltd v Commission, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled that, under European Union law, internal company communications with in-house lawyers are not protected by legal professional privilege (LPP). …
Read More Client Advisory – ECJ Confirms No Change to European Rules on Legal Professional Privilege for In-House Lawyers

In Binder v. Medicine Shoppe International, Inc., No. 09-14046 (E.D.Mich. 2010), a breach of contract dispute between the plaintiff (a franchisor) and the defendant (a franchisee) arose out of a Uniform Franchise Offering Circular and subsequent License Agreement (“Agreement”).  The Agreement was entered into in Michigan and provided that the parties would arbitrate any disputes regarding the Agreement in Missouri. …
Read More District Court Finds that the Federal Arbitration Act Preempts State Statute Barring Out-of-State Arbitrations

In early September, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released a proposed rule that seeks to repeal specific elements of Medicaid prescription drug regulations that were published in 2007. …
Read More Healthcare News from Capitol Hill and the Department of Health and Human Services – September 13, 2010

In a recent decision of the New York Supreme Court, United States Fid. & Guar. Co. v. American Re-insurance Co., Index No. 604517/02 (N.Y. Sup. Ct. Aug. 20, 2010), the court granted summary judgment to a ceding company against the defendant reinsurers on causes of action for breach of contract and breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing arising out of the cedent’s $987.4 million payment to settle certain asbestos injury claims. …
Read More New York State Court Rules that Reinsurers Must Follow Cedent’s Settlement and Loss Allocation

The federal district court of Rhode Island recently held that a third-party claimant cannot bring a direct action against an excess insurer under Rhode Island’s direct action statute even if the insured is bankrupt and cannot satisfy its self-insured retention. …
Read More Rhode Island Federal Court Holds That Direct Action by Third Party Claimant Against Excess Insurer Is Barred Where Insured’s Bankruptcy Prevents Exhaustion of Self-Insured Retention

Greg Hoffnagle and Marc Voses of Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge’s New York office will be presenting “Green Buildings and Risk Management: What Reinsurers Need to Know” at 4:30 p.m. on September 15, 2010.  EAPD is hosting a reception following their presentation so if you are planning to attend the conference, please come by and meet our attorneys and network with your peers in the industry. …
Read More Reinsurance Association of America’s ReClaims Conference – September 15-16, 2010 (New York)

A Maryland bankruptcy court has declared that Side A benefits under a D&O policy are not property of the bankrupt estate, with the result that two former executives who have been accused of making illegal payments and diverting funds from their former employer to start a new venture may be able to recoup certain defense costs. …
Read More Court Rules D&O Policy’s Side-A Benefits Not Property of Bankrupt Estate