California Insurance Company Pressing for its ‘Day in Court’
U.S. District Court Judge William B. Shubb granted the motion by the California Department of Insurance to dismiss the lawsuit filed by California Insurance Co. against the CDI. Shubb acted in a manner consistent with his previous decision in the Applied Underwriters Inc. case.
California Insurance Co. has indicated it will file an appeal to the U.S/ Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit as Applied Underwriters did in a prior federal case for an eventual return to argue the merits of its dispute with the CDI.
The CDI has worked to block CIC’s move to New Mexico, a move that has been supported by New Mexico’s Attorney General, who has filed to intervene in the lawsuit.
CIC in January filed suit in federal court to enjoin the CDI from continuing to take what the suit asserts are illegal actions to block the approved redomestication of CIC and to undermine a financially sound insurer by instituting a conservatorship to gain control of CIC.
CDI got approval last year to put the company in to conservatorship.
A CDI spokesman has been reached out to for comment.
CIC says it has still not been granted a hearing in court to hear the actual merits of the case including the legitimacy of the conservation.
CIC’s, when it gets is “day in court,” plans to argue against CDI’s “arbitrary and illegal imposition on ‘A’ rated CIC of a conservatorship.”
“Point is, this narrow decision was based on technicalities and did not weigh the merits of the case, a prospect that will be enabled when we pursue any of our available actions and appeals in the next round to set the path to a judgement on the actual merits,” CIC General Counsel Jeffrey Silver said in a statement. “CIC will raise issues of constitutional law in its effort to terminate the conservatorship imposed by CDI after it agreed with CIC’s planned move to New Mexico, then suddenly reversed its position and used the conservatorship in what is arguably an illegal manner.”
Silver said he’s confident CIC will eventually “be fully vindicated and able to operate its long-standing ‘A’ rated business in its new, chosen home, New Mexico. New Mexico State’s Attorney General has filed a brief supporting our position. We have many rounds to go, but we are ready and determined to stay the course.”
CIC holds an AM Best Financial Strength Rating of ‘A’ (Excellent) and a Long Term Issuer Credit Rating of ‘a’ (Excellent). The rating pertains to CIC and the seven insurance companies collectively referred to as North American Casualty Group (NAC).
Applied Underwriters is a global risk services firm. Applied Underwriters operates widely throughout the U.S., U.K., EU and Middle East. Its operational headquarters is located in Omaha, Neb.