Latest USA Headlines

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

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Approves Quebec Oil Train Crash Settlement

Oct 12 2015 // A U.S. bankruptcy judge on Friday approved a settlement that clears the way for payments to victims of Canada’s Lac-Megantic crude-by-rail derailment, according to the trustee for the insolvent railway at the heart...

Federal Attorneys to Appeal Katrina Flooding/MRGO Ruling

Oct 11 2015 // Federal attorneys filed notice on Oct. 9 that they will appeal a judge’s ruling that the U.S. government is responsible for some of the flooding that followed Hurricane Katrina and other storms — flooding blamed on...

U.S. Senator from Nevada Suing Exercise Band Maker over Eye Injury

Oct 9 2015 // U.S. Sen. Harry Reid is suing a company that makes and markets a flexible exercise band that he says slipped from his hand, causing him to fall and suffer eye, face and rib injuries on New Year’s Day.A lawsuit filed...

Ex-Senator Nelson to Exit NAIC Leadership Post

Oct 9 2015 // Former U.S. Senator Ben Nelson will not renew his contract as chief executive officer of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), the group announced.Nelson’s current term ends on Jan. 31, 2016. He...

Massey Mines Alerted Workers When Safety Inspectors on Site: Testimony

Oct 9 2015 // Massey Energy executives used an advanced warning system at the company’s Upper Big Branch mine to alert workers as soon as federal inspectors arrived on site, a former miner testified Thursday at the criminal trial...

California Wildfire Claims Top $1B as Peak Season Begins: Report

Oct 8 2015 // A report forecasts claims from two California wildfires last month will exceed $1 billion.Wildfires in 2015 have caused more damage and financial loss in the U.S. than in any other year since 2007, according to the report....

Now, Volkswagen’s Injury Reporting Being Questioned

Oct 8 2015 // Volkswagen AG reported death and injury claims at the lowest rate of any major automaker in the U.S. over the last decade.The numbers are so good that some industry experts wonder if they add up. The average reporting rate...

Supreme Court Deals Blow to Insider Trading Prosecutors

Oct 8 2015 // The U.S. Supreme Court let stand a major insider-trading ruling that threatens at least 10 convictions and creates what the Obama administration calls a road map for securities fraud.Rejecting an administration appeal...

West Virginia Files Suit Against Volkswagen Over Clean Diesel Claims

Oct 7 2015 // West Virginia may be the first U.S. state to sue Volkswagen AG for deceiving car buyers after the Environmental Protection Agency said last month that the company had installed software to hide that its diesel engines...

Former Georgia Peanut Managers Get Prison Time for Salmonella Outbreak

Oct 7 2015 // Two former managers of a Georgia peanut plant were sentenced to federal prison for their roles in a deadly salmonella outbreak, though the men received far less time behind bars than the ex-boss they helped convict.A U.S....

Conn. High Court Reinforces Protections for Private Sector Whistleblowers

Oct 6 2015 // Connecticut’s highest court made it easier for private sector workers to bring whistleblower claims against their employers without fear of retaliation, ruling in a case brought by a former UBS AG real estate...

Emission Scandal Puts VW Test Site in California Under Scrutiny

Oct 6 2015 // When Volkswagen opened its gleaming pollution testing center near the California coast, a top executive from the German automaker helped snip the blue ribbon and joined a tour of a lab so advanced that VW would brag the...

Credit Firm Experian Dealing with Fallout from T-Mobile Customer Breach

Oct 6 2015 // Experian, the world’s biggest credit data firm, could face fines and class-action lawsuits as well as reputational damage from the data breach at its U.S. business, according to analysts covering the...

BP’s Oil Spill Settlement with Gulf States, U.S. Tops $20 Billion

Oct 6 2015 // The value of BP Plc’s settlement with the U.S. government and five Gulf states over the Deepwater Horizon oil spill rose to $20.8 billion in the latest tally of costs from the U.S. Department of Justice.The...

Deadly West Virginia Mine Explosion Trial Puts Spotlight on Massey’s King Coal

Oct 6 2015 // Before death came to Upper Big Branch Mine, Donald L. Blankenship managed his patch of Appalachia like King Coal incarnate.Outside homes in rural West Virginia flew the banner of his company, Massey Energy Co.: a flame...

Parrot Bite? In-Law Woes? Whatever the Health Claim, There’s an Insurance Code

Oct 6 2015 // There are 70,000 ways to get sick, hurt or mortally injured, and the U.S. is making them official.Last Thursday, U.S. hospitals, doctors and other care providers had to start using internationally developed standards...

Insurers Say Trans-Pacific Pact Important for Industry Growth, Jobs

Oct 5 2015 // U.S. property/casualty insurers are welcoming the news that the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) parties have reached an agreement. Although details of the pact are unknown, the U.S. insurers say they believe the agreement...

Supreme Court to Hear Eurail Case on Foreign Entity Liability

Oct 5 2015 // The new Supreme Court term will include high-level discussions of affirmative action, free association and religious liberty. But the first Monday in October is starting with a suit about a Eurail pass. Specifically, the...

Insurers Respond Slowly to Growing Demand for Cyber Insurance: Timetric Report

Oct 5 2015 // The cyber risk insurance market is experiencing rapid development, with the size of global gross written premiums growing from US$850 million in 2012 to an estimated US$2.5 billion in 2014, according to a new report by...

Too-Big-to-Fail Insurers Face 10% Hike to Capital Requirements: Int’l Regulators

Oct 5 2015 // Global insurers with the greatest ties to the financial system would face an average increase of 10 percent to capital requirements under new standards proposed by a group of regulators.The increase would be as high as...