A 2012 Texas Federal Court decision has brought into focus the ability of an ERISA Plan to file a state subrogation tort action. While dealing specifically with a Contribution of Benefits issue, the Federal Court decision in Central States v.…
The Delaware Supreme Court proved me right recently. On March 19, 2013, the Court examined sloppy amendments the Delaware Legislature made to § 2363 back in 1993 and formally announced for the first time that a workers’ compensation carrier is…
We have long known that Democrats, financially-fueled by the trial lawyers’ lobby, are no fans of subrogation. Surprisingly, even Republicans continue to battle the subrogation bogeyman, an indication that subrogation education and lobbying of our legislators should be a priority…
On April 17, 2013, a fire of as-of-yet-undetermined origin at the West Fertilizer Company in West, Texas ignited as much as 270 tons of ammonium nitrate being stored at the facility. The resulting blast left a 90-foot-wide crater and caused…
As a means of raising revenue, particularly during times of economic crisis, a handful of states employ, and many states repeatedly revisit, the dubious and counter-productive scheme of imposing a tax on professional services, whether as a sales tax (including…
A rapidly changing area of insurance defense involves products causing injury or damage to people and property. Many states are moving towards adopting the standards set by the Restatement (Third) of Torts, and Wisconsin is no different. On February 1,…
In Bethke v. Auto-Owners Ins. Co., 2013 WI 16 (2013), the plaintiffs sought underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage under a policy issued by Auto-Owners (“Owners”) as a result of an automobile accident caused by an allegedly negligent driver of a rental…
Court Recognizes Importance of Subrogation In Reducing Premiums: Calingo v. Meridian Resource Co., LLC, 2013 WL 1250448 (S.D.N.Y. 2013). The U.S. government sponsors more than 350 different health Plans covering more than nine million federal employees, retirees, and beneficiaries through the…
U.S. Supreme Court Unanimously Holds Equity Does Not Trump Plan Language On April 16, 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its long-anticipated decision in U.S. Airways, Inc. v. McCutchen, 2013 WL 1567371 (2013), a case in which the future of ERISA…
A new Minnesota Court of Appeals decision makes clear that timing is everything when it comes to UIM subrogation. The court’s decision in Russell v. Haji-Ali, 826 N.W.2d 216 (Minn. App. 2013) means that a claims professional settling a uninsured/underinsured…