A recent study by Benfield Group Ltd. entitled “Global Reinsurance:  Capital Consequences-Billion Dollar Question” predicts a hardening in reinsurance pricing for the coming year, given reinsurers increasing exposure to recent catastrophes, such as Hurricane Ike, and the fallout from the global credit crisis.  Click here to review a copy of

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Read More Pricing in Insurance, Reinsurance Markets Shifting

The Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 was signed into law August 14, 2008. It greatly expands the powers of the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to protect the public from harmful products. …
Read More New Federal Consumer Protection Law Requires Certifications and Testing, Lowers Limits on Lead and Phthalates in Toys and Children’s Products, Increases Fines, Penalties and Enforcement Powers of CPSC

A federal judge recently denied motions by Credit Suisse First Boston Corp. (“Credit Suisse”) and other defendants to dismiss a lawsuit brought by Bankers Life Insurance Company (“Bankers Life”) over subprime-mortgage-backed bonds that Bankers Life purchased from Credit Suisse. 

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Read More Federal Judge Refuses to Dismiss Subprime Bond Purchaser Action Against Credit Suisse

In a recent, unpublished decision, in a case in which coverage was sought for a suit filed against the insured by a shareholder, the District Court of New Jersey held that that two causes of actions were covered, while the remaining two claims were excluded from coverage under the terms of the policy.  However, the court did not venture further into how to allocate, leaving it up to the parties to determine how best to allocate the defense costs in the ongoing litigation. 

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Read More Parties Ordered To Allocate Defense Costs Where Half Of Causes of Action Are Covered By D&O Policy

The Kentucky Court of Appeals recently reversed a trial court decision granting summary judgment to an insurer, finding that the question whether the insured misrepresented his criminal history by signing an application completed by an agent was a disputed question of fact. 

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Read More Kentucky State Court: Whether Insured Made a Material Misrepresentation By Signing Policy Application Was a Question of Fact

With the European Court of Justice’s (ECJ) decision in the case of Allianz SPA v West Tankers pending, a decision which will have major implications on EU national courts’ jurisdiction in relation to arbitration clauses (click here to read the previous blog on this case), the High Court has ruled that it does enjoy jurisdiction under Council Regulation (EC) No. 44/2001 (Regulation) in an insurance and arbitration related matter. …
Read More UK: High Court has Jurisdiction in Insurance and Arbitration Matter

On 8 August 2008, the Bermuda Monetary Authority (the BMA) announced significant enhancements to Bermuda’s solvency and disclosure regulations for insurance which were intended to help Bermuda achieve recognition as having equivalent regulatory standards to those in Europe (see our previous post here). 

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Read More BMA Issues Regulatory Update for October 2008

The Federal Deposit Insurance Company (“FDIC”), as conservator of IndyMac Federal Bank F.S.B. (“IndyMac”), recently filed a complaint seeking a declaration that PMI Mortgage Insurance Corp. (“PMI”) could not rescind coverage for 5,565 residential mortgages. IndyMac Federal Bank F.SB. by the Federal Deposit Ins. Corp. as Conservator v. PMI Mortgage Ins. Co., No. 08-CV-04303 (N.D. Cal. Sept. 12, 2008). 

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Read More FDIC Sues IndyMac’s Primary Mortgage Insurer, PMI, Over Coverage for $1.9 Billion in Outstanding Mortgages

The exponential rise of blogs over the last eight years has led to the launch of a new type of liability insurance for bloggers.  Supporters of this form of coverage note that bloggers are increasingly facing threats of libel and defamation lawsuits, copyright infringement claims, and charges of invasion of privacy. 

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Read More Insurers Begin Offering Liability Insurance for Bloggers