Comprehensive advice for a complex industry.
Regulation, Reinsurance & Insolvency
Insurance is famously complicated and even professionals who work in the industry can get caught by the many legal and regulatory issues that govern it. Our multidisciplinary team of attorneys and consultants understands the highly competitive and complex nature of the industry — and we know the Pennsylvania state insurance regulatory system inside and out.
We counsel clients on statutory and regulatory issues, new initiatives and insurance law problems. We advise clients on state insurance laws and administrative practices and procedures as they exist nationally for all lines of insurance. We also deal extensively with regulators, liquidators and companies with interests in the reinsurance field, and we advise troubled insurance companies, creditors and reinsurers.
We're ready at all times to litigate when necessary; we've represented clients before administrative agencies and in state and federal courts throughout the nation.
Whatever it is, we've got it covered.
Our practice handles the legal and regulatory matters that the insurance industry encounters, including:
- Mergers and acquisitions
- Formation and corporate governance of insurance companies, Blue Cross/Blue Shield Plans, HMOs and PPOs
- Insurance holding company transactions and filings
- Capital adequacy and business plan development
- Insurer insolvency proceedings
- Reinsurance issues and transactions
- Self-insurance, captives, risk retention groups and purchasing groups
- Insurance regulatory filings
- Administrative hearings
- Policy interpretation and coverage analysis
- Dispute resolution (litigation and arbitration)
- Expert-witness engagements
Insurance Coverage
Our attorneys have helped to resolve contractual coverage concerns of insurers and excess insurers and their potential exposure from dramatic and catastrophic losses. Excess insurance and reinsurance account for an increasing percentage of comprehensive risk management because of greater exposure in toxic tort claims, long-term latent liability exposure for the coal mining industry, natural disasters such as hurricanes, products liability (particularly for pharmaceutical companies) and professional liability for attorneys, accountants, directors and officers.
Our attorneys are actively involved in the insurance industry, which is why we're so well suited to advise risk managers, claims professionals and insureds with increasing self-insured retention limits. We've handled coverage matters in the following areas:
- Director and officer liability insurance
- Owner-controlled insurance programs (OCIP) on large construction projects
- Fine art, including valuations and appraisals
- Errors and omissions liability insurance
- Excess insurance coverage disputes at the primary and excess level
- Bad-faith claims
- Class actions involving consumer-related claims
- Insurance coverage disputes involving insolvent insurers
- Insurance coverage disputes for a wide range of insurance policies
- Insurance coverage opinion letters
- Interpretation of excess policies
- Intellectual property coverage issues
- Securities coverage issues
- Business loss and interruption claims
- Advertising injury claims
- Broker/agent issues
- Fidelity and surety
Our Clients
We've helped clients from every sector meet their unique regulatory and business challenges, from HMOs and PPOs to nonprofit health plan corporations, insurance companies, risk retention groups and captive insurance companies. Many other individuals and entities also deal with insurers and need our help, including:
- Insurance rating organizations
- Financial institutions
- Risk purchasing groups
- Third-party administrators
- Producers
- Long-term care facilities
- Regulators
- Private and public companies (insureds)
- Professionals (physicians, lawyers, engineers, etc.)
- Hospitals and health systems
A sample of the Group’s accomplishments in these areas over the past several years includes:
- Representing Highmark Inc., one of the largest Blue Cross/Blue Shield licensees in the country, in its consolidation with Independence Blue Cross before the Pennsylvania Insurance Department and several state insurance departments throughout the country.
- Represented OneBeacon Insurance Company in litigation of a preference action brought by the statutory liquidator of Legion Insurance Company (In Liquidation).
- Represented Wynn Resorts, Inc. and its principal, Steven Wynn in insurance litigation involving construction claims, fine art losses and general property losses.
- Represented Comerica Bank in a $120 million collateral swap transaction involving a Pennsylvania-based insurance company in rehabilitation.
- Represented an insurance company in a stock purchase transaction involving the sale of a life insurance company, including the preparation of an administrative services agreement, reinsurance agreement and Insurance Department regulatory filings.
- Formed risk retention groups (RRG’s) and has provided ongoing advice to the RRG.
- Represented a coalition of title insurance companies, which collectively account for over 90% of the written title insurance premium in State of Delaware, in the formation and operation of a title insurance rating organization in Delaware.
- Represented and advised several clients with respect to their rights and interests in the recent insolvencies of PHICO, Reliance Insurance Company, and Legion and Villanova Insurance Companies.
- Successfully defended Highmark Inc., Pennsylvania’s only Blue Shield plan and one of our nation’s largest health insurers, in numerous state forums against claims of irregularities in the fundamental corporate transaction that created the entity as well as class action litigation challenging the surplus and reserve levels maintained by the company.