Insurance

Expert Analysis

• Series

  Pursuing Wellness: Steps Toward A Supportive Firm Culture

  

  As an early advocate of the American Bar Association's year-old well-being pledge, we launched an integrated program to create and sustain a supportive workplace culture with initiatives focused on raising mental health awareness, embracing creativity and giving back to the community, says Casey Ryan at Reed Smith.

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  Pursuing Wellness: Mental Health Education As A Firm Priority

  

  Our firm drives a holistic concept of well-being through educational opportunities, such as a series of expert-led workshops intended to address mental health and substance abuse issues that we vowed to fight when we signed the American Bar Association's well-being pledge one year ago, says Krista Logelin at Morgan Lewis.

• GAO Report Illuminates Insurer Influence On Drug Discounts

  

  A recent report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office on Medicare Part D drug prices provides novel insights concerning the variability of negotiated discounts across drugs and insurers, and reveals several factors that may be responsible for the fluctuation in rebating across health insurance plans, say consultants at Analysis Group.

• Series

  Pursuing Wellness: A Firm's Work With Mental Health Experts

  

  Signing the American Bar Association's well-being pledge last year was a natural progression of our firm's commitment to employee wellness, which has included developing partnerships with professionals in the mental health space to provide customized programming to firm attorneys and staff, say Annette Sciallo and Mark Goldberg at Latham.

• Series

  Pursuing Wellness: When A Firm Brings Counseling On Site

  

  One year ago, our firm signed the American Bar Association's well-being pledge and embraced a commitment to providing on-site behavioral health resources, which has since become a key aspect of our well-being program, say Meg Meserole and Kimberly Merkel at Akin Gump.

• SEC's Broker Bar Stance Hinges On Penalties Vs. Remedies

  

  The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's recent decision holding that Financial Industry Regulatory Authority expulsions are remedial, not punitive, spells out how far a regulator can go in sanctioning securities misconduct in light of the U.S. Supreme Court's Kokesh opinion, says Clinton Marrs of Marrs Griebel Law.

• Insurer Claims-Adjustment Documents Are Often Discoverable

  

  Despite insurers' claims to the contrary, a Colorado federal court's recent decision in Olsen v. Owners provides a helpful reminder that claims-adjustment communications and documents often fall well outside the ambit of traditional privilege protections, even when an attorney is involved, say Christopher Sheehan and Jan Larson of Jenner & Block.

• Series

  Pursuing Wellness: Inside A Firm Meditation Program

  

  After our firm signed the American Bar Association’s well-being pledge one year ago, we launched two key programs that included weekly meditation sessions and monthly on-site chair massages to help people address both the mental and physical aspects of working at a law firm, says Marci Eisenstein at Schiff Hardin.

• Early Sampling Of Electronic Info Is Underutilized In Discovery

  

  The early and prompt provision of samples from all electronically stored information sources as a part of ESI protocol search methodology is consistent with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and may allow for significant cost savings during discovery, says Zachary Caplan at Berger Montague.

• 3 Lessons For Calif. Insureds From Late-Notice Rule Decision

  

  The California Supreme Court's recent decision in Pitzer College v. Indian Harbor establishes that the notice-prejudice rule may protect California policyholders even if a contractual choice-of-law provision selects less favorable law, but such protection is not guaranteed, especially in the case of third-party policies, say Nathan Anderson and Tyler Gerking of Farella Braun.

• The Factors Courts Consider In Deposition Location Disputes

  

  In the absence of a federal rule governing deposition location, federal courts are frequently called on to resolve objections to out-of-state deposition notices. Recent decisions reveal what information is crucial to courts in making the determination, says Kevin O’Brien at Porter Wright.

• What To Consider Before Filing For A Rule 57 Speedy Hearing

  

  Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 57 and its state counterparts provide a method for expediting claims for declaratory judgment that warrants closer attention than it has historically received from litigants and courts, say attorneys at Gibson Dunn.

• Series

  Why I Became A Lawyer: Expanding The Meaning Of Diversity

  

  My conservative, Catholic parents never skipped a beat when accepting that I was gay, and encouraged me to follow my dreams wherever they might lead. But I did not expect they would lead to the law, until I met an inspiring college professor, says James Holmes of Clyde & Co.

• NJ Ruling Does Not Bode Well For 'Stranger' Life Policies

  

  Since the height of stranger-originated life insurance policies over a decade ago, states have not provided much guidance on the legality of existing policies. However, the New Jersey Supreme Court's recent decision in Sun Life v. Wells Fargo finding such policies invalid could influence other states to follow suit, say attorneys at Cozen O'Connor.

• State Net

  Ransomware Poses Tough Choices For State, Local Gov'ts

  

  This year, more than 70 state and local governments have been targeted by ransomware attacks. Despite a flood of legislation aimed at the problem, many state and local government information technology leaders still lack the funding and cybersecurity talent they need, says Korey Clark of State Net Capitol Journal.