Latest Legislation Headlines

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

Streamlining surplus lines

Jul 2 2007 // Declarations“Non-admitted insurance reform is a pro-consumer piece of legislation. HR 1065 makes it clear that the state where the policyholder resides should be the state that is in charge of regulation. …...

Lawyers, businesses groups tackle Oregon product liability laws

Jul 2 2007 // Business advocates and trial lawyers could be headed for a showdown over Oregon’s product liability laws before the legislative session comes to its scheduled end, and the verdict is anything but certain.The fight is...

Supreme Court ruling limits investors’ antitrust

Jul 2 2007 // Last month’s U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling that blocks investors from suing Wall Street investment banks under antitrust laws could save Wall Street firms a bundle by limiting investors to smaller recoveries.In a...

Contracts count when dealing with subcontractors

Jul 2 2007 // One of the many challenges general contractors — both commercial and residential — have faced over the past five years involves subcontractor insurance.The subcontractor marketplace has always been volatile....

Maine Gov. Baldacci Signs Bill Allowing Dirigo to Self-Insure

Jun 29 2007 // Gov. John Baldacci this week signed into law a bill that authorizes Maine’s Dirigo Health program to self-insure. But it doesn’t mean that will happen overnight, or even anytime soon.For now, the...

N.Y. Court Rules Drunk Driving Does Not Include Using Inhalants with Alcohol

Jun 29 2007 // A motorist accused of “huffing” stimulants from an aerosol can before getting into a deadly wreck cannot be charged with driving while intoxicated, New York’s highest court ruled Wednesday.The Legislature...

Mich. House Passes Bill to Increase Use of Child Safety Seats

Jun 29 2007 // More Michigan children would be required to travel in safety car seats under legislation passed this week by the state House.Current Michigan law generally requires children under 4 to ride in a child restraint system,...

S&P’s European Insurance Symposium Highlights Impending Changes

Jun 28 2007 // Kathleen A. Corbet, President of Standard & Poor’s, told the audience at its second annual European Insurance Symposium that the insurance sector is at a critical point, with the move to greater transparency,...

Passengers Have Duty to Aid Crash Victims, N.J. Court Rules

Jun 28 2007 // Two passengers who witnessed their intoxicated friend crash his car into the back of a motorcycle had an obligation to help the injured man, a New Jersey appellate court has ruled.The driver and his passengers made 44 cell...

Treasury Chief Paulson Vows Review of U.S. Financial Services Regulation

Jun 28 2007 // The Bush administration plans to review the U.S. government’s regulatory system for financial institutions with the goal of making changes to better reflect modern markets.Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said the...

Crist: Fla. Home Insurance Rates Haven’t Fallen as much as Hoped

Jun 28 2007 // Gov. Charlie Crist knows a new law hasn’t cut home insurance rates as much as he and consumers had expected.Crist said some insurance companies have not filed for rates as low as he had hoped after lawmakers changed...

Fla. Office of Insurance Regulation Announces Staff Changes

Jun 27 2007 // Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty recently announced new staff changes for the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation.“The new additions to our management team give the Office an exceptional combination of...

Fla. Gov. Signs Citizens’ Rate Freeze at Home of Katrina Victims

Jun 27 2007 // In Miami, Florida Governor Charlie Crist ceremonially signed legislation to continue insurance reforms by freezing Citizens Property Insurance rates and implementing additional measures he said will help stabilize the...

Judge: WTC Volunteer Fireman’s Family Entitled to Death Benefit

Jun 26 2007 // Rebuffing the government, a U.S. judge ruled that the family of a volunteer firefighter who died in the burning World Trade Center towers, is eligible for a death benefit given to public safety officers killed in the line...

R.I. Bill Would Give Businesses Tax Break for Installing Fire Sprinklers

Jun 26 2007 // Legislation entitling business owners to a tax credit if they are forced to install sprinklers or new fire alarms has stalled in the General Assembly, but the bill’s backers said they were hopeful it could still pass...

Psychiatrist Not Liable for Patient’s Car Accident, Pa. Court Rules

Jun 26 2007 // A psychiatrist cannot be sued for a car crash caused by a patient, a Pennsylvania appeals court ruled.The Superior Court ruling upholds a decision written by a Blair County judge dismissing the lawsuit filed by Matthew...

Mo. Judge Overturns $17 Million Aftermarket Parts Verdict

Jun 26 2007 // A state judge has overturned a jury’s decision ordering American Family Mutual Insurance Co. to pay $17 million as part of a class-action lawsuit over aftermarket vehicle parts in Missouri.Jackson County Circuit...

House Passes Uniform Surplus Lines Insurance Reform

Jun 26 2007 // The U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 1065, the Nonadmitted and Reinsurance Reform Act of 2007, legislation that if enacted, will help increase the efficiency of the existing state-based insurance regulatory...

Ind. Passes Tougher Seat Belt Laws, Cigarette Tax Hike

Jun 26 2007 // Indiana lawmakers decided that smokers will pay more to puff and almost everyone will be required to wear seat belts under dozens of new state laws that take effect on June 24.Legislators raised the cigarette tax for the...

Appeals Court Gives Mass. Anti-Oil Spill Law Another Chance

Jun 25 2007 // In a case stemming from a devastating oil spill, a federal appeals court in Boston sided with environmentalists and ordered a new hearing on a Massachusetts law aimed at preventing such disasters.The Legislature passed the...