Latest Legislation Headlines

All the headlines from our Legislation Topic Page, ordered by recency.

Judge Allows Punitive Damage Claims for Gulf Oil Spill to Move Ahead

Aug 29 2011 // Plaintiff lawyers claimed a victory on Friday when a U.S. federal judge overseeing hundreds of lawsuits against BP and others over last year’s big oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico allowed much of the case to move...

Oklahoma Workers’ Comp Overhaul Now in Effect

Aug 26 2011 // Legislation overhauling the Oklahoma workers’ compensation laws becomes effective today, Aug. 26, 2011. The Oklahoma Workers’ Compensation Court noted that while the effective date for Senate Bill 878 is Aug....

Insurer Group Names Jackson as Southeast Lobbyist

Aug 26 2011 // The insurer group, American Insurance Association, has hired Ron Jackson to serve as its southeast region assistant vice president for state affairs. Jackson currently is the assistant commissioner for the Georgia Office...

Minnesota Seeks to Bolster Insurance Regulation with Commerce Dept. Changes

Aug 24 2011 // The Minnesota Department of Commerce has undergone a reorganization that includes a new Division of Insurance aimed at unifying and strengthening insurance regulation in that state.The Minnesota Division of Insurance...

Calif. Court Rules on Benefit from Negotiated Rate Differential

Aug 24 2011 // California’s highest court has ruled that accident plaintiffs may only recover economic damages equal to the amount paid by their insurer and not the higher amount billed. The opinion stated that “the...

North, South Carolina Coastal Insurance Plans Ready for Hurricane Irene

Aug 24 2011 // Caught square in the path of Irene, the first major hurricane of the season, the coastal insurance plans in North and South Carolina are prepared to absorb what may be their first major losses in years.Both plans appear to...

Massachusetts Judge Refuses to Quash Fatal Arson Evidence

Aug 24 2011 // A Massachusetts judge has rejected a plea to suppress evidence in the case of a Northampton man accused of setting 15 fires that left two men dead and damaged property and vehicles more than a year ago.Prosecutors allege...

Tennessee Governor Resists Calls to Tweak New Cap on Damages

Aug 24 2011 // Republican Gov. Bill Haslam doesn’t intend to rework the state’s new law limiting payouts in successful lawsuits against doctors and other businesses, despite calls from some members of his own party for...

Connecticut Court Rules on Guaranty Fund Role in Workers’ Comp Claims

Aug 23 2011 // The state insurance guaranty fund can be considered the last insurer on a workers’ compensation risk that has multiple insurers and be initially liable for paying benefits to the injured employee, with the right to...

Judge Allows Investors, Insurers to Intervene in Bank of America Settlement

Aug 23 2011 // A New York state judge granted the request of dozens of investors including pension funds, insurers and several Federal Home Loan Banks to intervene in Bank of America Corp.’s proposed $8.5 billion settlement with...

North Dakota Farm Groups Backing Crop Insurance, Research

Aug 22 2011 // Crop insurance, research and export promotion should be among the top priorities in the next federal farm bill, say spokesmen for North Dakota agricultural groups, who are bracing for cuts in federal...

Insurers Oppose Change in South Carolina Workers’ Compensation Medical Fees

Aug 22 2011 // A new South Carolina regulation for calculating medical fees in worker injury cases has set off opposition from insurers and business groups that claim it favors certain medical providers over others and will increase...

Hunter’s Lawsuit Stirs Landowner Liability Concern in New Hampshire

Aug 22 2011 // Some New Hampshire lawmakers worried a lawsuit by a hunter will prompt landowners to close their lands to hunting and other recreational activities will meet Tuesday to discuss how to tighten the state’s law...

Judge Rejects JPMorgan’s Bid to Dismiss Whistleblower’s Retaliation Claim

Aug 22 2011 // A Manhattan federal judge rejected JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s bid to dismiss a whistleblower lawsuit by a former private banker who said she was fired in retaliation for warning about a suspicious Israeli...

Financial Firms Balk at New Law to Help Catch U.S. Tax Evaders

Aug 22 2011 // A U.S. law meant to snuff out billions of dollars in offshore tax evasion has drawn the criticism of the world’s banks and business people, who dismiss it as imperialist and “the neutron bomb of the global...

Florida Employers May Face Higher Workers’ Compensation Costs

Aug 19 2011 // Florida business owners could see their workers’ compensation premiums go up if regulators agree to raise rates by a recommended statewide average 8.9 percent.The National Council of Compensation Insurance (NCCI)...

Bermuda Association Lauds Government Progress on Solvency II ‘Equivalence’

Aug 18 2011 // While U.S. regulators are beginning to be worried about the impending imposition of the European Union’s Solvency II regulations for the re/insurance industry, which will come into force in 2014, Bermuda has been...

Florida Supreme Court Rules Gov. Scott Erred in Regulation Freeze

Aug 17 2011 // The Florida Supreme Court says Gov. Rick Scott overstepped his authority by suspending state agency rule-making procedures.The justices split 5-2 in the opinion. The majority ruled in favor of a disabled woman who...

Mississippi Judge Dismisses Claim Against ‘The Help’ Author

Aug 17 2011 // Did Kathryn Stockett use her brother’s African-American maid as the basis for a character in the bestselling novel-turned-movie “The Help?”For now, that question may go unanswered, by a court anyway. A...

Washington Court Rules in Single-Car, Underinsured Motorist Case

Aug 17 2011 // A Washington State couple has been turned down on their appeal of a ruling that said Farmers Insurance can deny their uninsured motorist claim following a single-car accident, which they said was caused by another driver...