On March 25, 2009, Washington Governor Chris Gregoire signed into law Senate Bill 5417, An Act Relating to Flood Insurance Coverage (the “Act”).  The Act applies to insurers issuing homeowner, condominium unit owner, residential tenant and residential fire insurance policies that do not cover damage caused by flood. 

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Read More Washington Governor Signs Flood Insurance Coverage Bill

The Venezuelan National Assembly recently engaged in its first discussions regarding the proposed new Ley de Actividad Aseguradora, which would establish a new Superintendency of Insurance Activity and contain provisions concerning the authorization, supervision and regulation of the nation’s insurance industry. 

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Read More Venezuelan National Assembly Engages in Initial Discussions Regarding Proposed New Insurance Regulatory Law

In addition to opening the Costa Rican insurance and reinsurance market to private competition, the new laws and regulations enacted since the Fall of 2008 permit the Instituto Nacional de Seguros (INS), the former holder of the government monopoly over the industry, to diversify its investments in an effort to seek better returns. 

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Read More Costa Rica: INS Diversifies Its Investment Approach As Permitted By New Insurance Laws

Helen Clark and Peter Fidler of EAPD attended this joint seminar, chaired by the Rt. Hon. Lord Justice Rix on 31 March 2009. The panel, including David Hertzell, Law Commissioner, Bob Britton, Chairman of the LMA Law Reform Committee and Paul Hopkin, Technical Director of AIRMIC, analysed the responses to date to the Consultation on the reform of insurance contract law and confirmed the next stages of the process. 

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Read More BILA/Law Commission Seminar on Insurance Contract Law Reform

On Tuesday, March 31, 2009, New York State Insurance Department (“NYSID”) Superintendent Eric Dinallo announced that the NYSID entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (“MoU”) with the Autoridade Monetária de Macau (“AMCM”), Macau’s insurance regulator. 

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Read More New York Insurance Department Announces Cooperation Agreement with Macau

Please join Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge on Monday 20 April 2009 for this complimentary webinar that we have put together for insurance industry professionals. 

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Read More Complimentary EAPD Webinar: The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and International Anti-Corruption for the Insurance Industry

Rhonda Enterprises S.A. (“Rhonda”), a vessel owner, entered into a charter party agreement with certain charterers, Projector S.A. and Projector Asia Pte. Ltd for the carriage of goods from Taiwan to Singapore (collectively, “Projector”). 

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Read More Court Orders Party to Pay Attorney’s Fees and Costs Related to Opposing Party’s Motion to Confirm Arbitral Award

Legislation (Senate Bill 1894) introduced in the Florida Senate to exempt surplus lines insurers from the provisions of Chapter 627 has been amended by the Committee on Banking and Insurance and re-referred to the Judiciary Committee. 

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Read More UPDATE: Florida Senate Committee Amends Surplus Lines Insurer Exemption Legislation

The Solvency II framework directive has finally been agreed and the proposals are expected to be formally passed in the next six weeks by both the European Parliament and the European and Financial Affairs Council (a subset of the Council of Ministers). 

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Read More EU: Solvency II Directive Agreed – Group Supervision Proposals Dropped

The European Commission has stated in a report, adopted on 24 March 2009, that two of the four forms of cooperation benefiting from the Insurance Block Exemption Regulation (the “BER”) may continue to be protected under a partially renewed BER when the current one expires on 31 March 2010. 

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Read More EU: European Commission Issues Provisional Views on the Renewal of the Insurance Block Exemption Regulation (358/2003/EEC)