The United States District Court for the District of Minnesota recently granted an insurer’s motion for summary judgment based upon its finding that the underlying claims were excluded by the policy’s broadly worded Product Exclusion. 


Read More Minnesota District Court Grants Summary Judgment to Insurer Based Upon Broadly Worded Product Exclusion

Though both the House and Senate were officially in recess, several notable occurrences took place last week as key players moved ahead on the difficult task of how to reconcile the differences between the two chambers’ healthcare reform plans. 


Read More Last Week in DC: The Healthcare Reform Debate – January 11, 2010

U.S. House Representatives Peter DeFazio, (D-OR) and Gene Taylor (D-MS) drafted a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) in support of repealing the antitrust exemption under the McCarran Ferguson Act for health insurers and medical liability insurers. 


Read More Repeal of Antitrust Exemption Gains Traction as House and Senate Democrats Reconcile Healthcare Reform Bills

Wednesday’s announcement that Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd (D-CT) will retire and not seek reelection in 2010 will surely have an impact on the large-scale financial regulatory overhaul effort he is currently shepherding through the Committee. 


Read More What Dodd’s Retirement May Mean for Financial Regulatory Overhaul

At the end of December 2009, Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley released a comprehensive report criticizing Massachusetts managed competition system for the deregulation of auto insurance.  Prior to the managed competition system being introduced in 2007, auto insurance rates were set by the Massachusetts Division of Insurance for all insurers. 
Read More Massachusetts Attorney General Issues Report Stating Managed Competition of Auto Insurance Has Failed

In Clydesdale Financial Services Ltd and others v Robert Smailes and others [2009] EWHC 3190 (Ch), the principal issues before the Court were whether the third claimant, Focus Insurance Company Ltd (Focus), had a real prospect of success in its claims to be, first, a creditor (under the Insolvency Act 1986) of the fifth defendant, Alexander Samuel LLP (LLP) in respect of unpaid premiums and, second, a “victim” under ss.423-425 of the Insolvency Act 1986 of the sale of LLP’s business to Jiva Solicitors LLP (Jiva) effected around the same time as it went into administration. 


Read More UK: English High Court Decides that a Non-Creditor Can be Established as a “Victim” of a Transaction at an Undervalue

In Ms Jacqueline Power v (1) The Trustees of the Open Text (UK) Limited Group Life Assurance Scheme (2) Open Text (UK) Limited [2009] EWHC 3064 (Ch), the High Court considered whether either the trustee of an employee life assurance scheme or the employer that issued the scheme was under a duty to consider the level of cover provided under the scheme and whether the trustee was under a duty to consider whether the cover was appropriate. 


Read More UK: Trustees’ Duties in Employee Life Assurance Schemes

Recently, Judge Stanwood Duval, Jr. of the U.S. District Court of the Eastern District of Louisiana, found the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers liable for damages resulting from Hurricane Katrina-related flooding that occurred in certain areas outside of New Orleans. 


Read More Army Corps of Engineers Held Liable in the “MRGO” Katrina-Related Litigation