The Illinois Department of Insurance has issued a Notice of Proposed Repealer of the Reinsurance Ceded Contracts regulation (50 Ill. Adm. Code Part 1101). The regulation requires all insurance companies to submit a certified copy of a reinsurance ceded contract upon written request of the Director of Insurance. According to…
Read More Illinois Department of Insurance Proposes Repeal of Reinsurance Ceded Contracts Regulation

On May 16, 2017, California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones announced the appointment of Ken Schnoll as General Counsel for the California Department of Insurance. As stated by Commissioner Jones, Mr. Schnoll brings more than 30 years’ experience to his new role, including work in regulatory and transactional matters with health…
Read More New General Counsel Appointed by the California Commissioner of Insurance

Locke Lord has been recognized as one of the leading cybersecurity law firms by corporate counsel in the “BTI Law Firms Best at Cybersecurity 2017: Corporate Counsel Rank the Law Firms Leading the Charge on Change” report. Published by BTI Consulting Group, the report states that cybersecurity and…

Read More Locke Lord Recognized as a Leading Cybersecurity Law Firm, According to BTI Consulting Group

Three bills have recently been filed in the Massachusetts legislature that would require motor vehicle insurers to pay a minimum hourly labor rate when reimbursing repair shops in the State. Identical bills by Rep. Cabral (H494) and Sen. Welch (S599) would create this minimum rate by using the average rate…

Read More Auto Labor Rate Legislation in Massachusetts

Beginning October 1, 2017, health insurers, health care centers, pharmacy benefits managers, and third party administrators that administer health benefits, and utilization of new companies, licensed in Connecticut, will be required to file their first annual certification to the insurance department that it maintains a comprehensive information security program in…

Read More Cybersecurity Compliance Requirements are Piling Up

The Financial CHOICE Act 2.0 released by Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas) on April 19, 2017 (“Act”) would have a significant impact on the extent to which the federal government regulates insurance. First and foremost, the Act would repeal the Federal Insurance Office and replace it with a bureau of the…
Read More Impact of the Financial CHOICE Act 2.0 on the Insurance Industry

Both houses of the Connecticut General Assembly have passed HB 7025, which would create a new legal process whereby a Connecticut domestic insurer could divide into multiple insurers and allocate assets and obligations to the “new” insurer. The new insurer would become a legal successor to the original insurer. HB…
Read More Connecticut General Assembly Passes Bill Authorizing Domestic Insurers to Divide

Several insurance related bills are currently pending in the Illinois General Assembly. A Senate passage deadline has been extended to May 5, 2017 for a bill requiring diversity reporting by insurers (Senate Bill 809) and a bill banning the use of credit information to calculate personal automobile insurance premiums (Senate…
Read More Insurance Related Legislation Pending in the Illinois General Assembly

The Texas Legislature is currently considering the authorization of domestic surplus lines insurance companies in Texas. If approved, Texas would join at least 10 other states with similar domestic surplus lines insurance company laws. The proposed legislation is currently working through the Texas House and Senate and appears to be…

Read More Texas Considers Domestic Surplus Lines Insurance Company Legislation

The federal Third Circuit Court of Appeals has enforced a Travelers asbestos exclusion, finding it to be unambiguous. In General Refractories Co. v. First State Ins. Co., the court analyzed language that read: “It is agreed that this policy does not apply to [loss] arising out of asbestos…” General…

Read More 3rd Circuit Upholds Asbestos Exclusion Under Pennsylvania Law