Reinsurance Arbitration | Loree Reinsurance and Arbitration Law Forum

Posts Tagged ‘Reinsurance Arbitration’

HARRISMARTIN REINSURANCE SUMMIT: FRESH PERSPECTIVES ON THE REINSURANCE FRONT

August 22nd, 2011 Arbitration Practice and Procedure, Events, Reinsurance Arbitration, Reinsurance Claims, Reinsurance Mediation No Comments »

The frequency of reinsurance disputes, like most things in the insurance industry, is cyclical in nature, and over the last three or four years or so, the number of new disputes each year has declined fairly significantly compared to 1990 through 2005 levels. I don’t have statistics to back that statement up, but it is informed by personal experience and numerous discussions with industry participants and their service providers.

Reduced dispute frequency is good news for the industry, but it doesn’t mean that industry executives should assume that reinsurance disputes are a thing of the past, ignore important developments that bear on their resolution, or become less proactive in their efforts to prevent them. Keeping apprised of recent, pertinent reinsurance- and dispute-resolution-related legal, regulatory and economic developments is particularly important today, because there have been – and will likely continue to be – many that may bear on the nature and frequency of future reinsurance disputes.

To that end, a number of experienced industry executives and in-house counsel, and a small group of outside counsel, have joined forces with HarrisMartin Publishing to put together a two-day conference designed to survey important, recent developments concerning reinsurance and reinsurance dispute resolution. The conference — entitled “Reinsurance Summit: Fresh Perspectives on the Reinsurance Front” — is scheduled to take place at the Lowes Philadelphia Hotel on September 22-23, 2011.

It promises to be an excellent opportunity to keep abreast of what’s happening in the world of reinsurance and reinsurance-dispute-resolution, network with friends and colleagues, and earn CLE credits if you need them. Admission is $895.00, but HarrisMartin is offering a $100.00 discount to those who register by September 2, 2011. Registration, CLE and hotel information is here (HarrisMartin has negotiated a reduced, $199.00 per night hotel rate for conference attendees).

Here’s the program as described by HarrisMartin:

Day 1, Thursday, September 22, 2011

8:15 a.m. – 8:30 a.m.

WELCOME BY CO-CHAIRS

Edward K. Lenci, Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP, NewYork

Leslie J. Davis, Vice President & Assistant General Counsel, General Re, and Senior Vice President & General Counsel, US Aviation Underwriters, Stamford, CT

Wendy R. Taylor, Vice President and Associate Counsel, Chubb & Son, a division of Federal Insurance Company, Warren, NJ

8:30 a.m. – 9:45 a.m.

STATUTORY AND REGULATORY UPDATE: DODD-FRANK, THE NON-ADMITTED AND REINSURANCE REFORM ACT, AND THE FEDERAL INSURANCE OFFICE

• Title V of the Dodd Frank Act: A discussion of the major interests lobbying for this legislation and against it, how and when the reinsurance provisions will be implemented and enforced, and the likely practical impact on reinsurance transactions.

• The Non-admitted and Reinsurance Reform Act: A discussion of issues relating to preemption, the future role of the NAIC, the changes to the significance of an insurer’s state of domicile, and how states and ceding companies may respond.

• The Federal Insurance Office: A discussion of this new office, “covered agreements,” the influence of Solvency II and international governing bodies, and the impact on state law, including a discussion of federalism and constitutionality.

Moderator:

A. Lindsay Doering, Law Office of A. Lindsay Doering, Philadelphia

Panel:

Patrick H. Cantilo, Cantilo & Bennett LLP, Austin, TX

Kimberly M. Welsh, Vice President and Assistant General Counsel, Reinsurance Association of America, Washington, D.C.

Daniel Schelp, Managing Attorney, National Association of Insurance Commissioners

9:45 a.m. – 10:45 a.m.

THE JUDICIAL SCRUTINY OF ARBITRAL AWARDS

Over the last few years, courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court, have decided a number of controversial cases concerning the power of courts to vacate arbitral awards on the grounds of excess-of-powers, evident partiality and procedural misconduct. Several of those cases involved arbitrations concerning reinsurance disputes. This panel will discuss recent developments pertinent to judicial review of arbitral awards, including outcome-based review, arbitral authority to award attorney fees and costs, adequacy of arbitrator disclosures, arbitrator qualifications, and arbitral “due process.” Among the controversial cases the panel will discuss are:

• Stolt-Nielsen, S.A. v. AnimalFeeds Int’l Corp. (U.S. Supreme Court)

• AT&T Mobility v. Concepcion (U.S. Supreme Court)

• Reliastar Life Ins. Co. v. EMC Nat’l Life Co. (2nd Circuit)

• PMA Capital Ins. Co. v. Platinum Underwriters Bermuda, Ltd. (3rd Circuit)

• Dealer Computer Services, Inc. v. Dub Herring Ford, et al. (6th Circuit)

• Trustmark Ins. Co. v. John Hancock Life Ins. Co. (7th Circuit)

• Scandinavian Re Co. Ltd. v. St. Paul Fire & Marine Ins. Co. (S.D.N.Y.) (appeal pending)

• Amerisure Mut. Ins. Co., et al. v. GLOBAL Reins. Corp. of Am. (Ill. App. 1st Dist.)

Panel:

Philip J. Loree Jr., Loree & Loree, Manhasset, NY

John M. Nonna, Dewey & LeBoeuf LLP, NewYork

Richard Faulkner, Blume, Faulkner, Skeen & Northam, PLLC, Richardson, TX

10:45 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.

REFRESHMENT BREAK

11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

REINSURANCE CONTRACT WORDING: BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU ASK FOR!

Reinsurance contract wording is changing, due in part to the increasingly global nature of reinsurance and the competing regulatory requirements of different jurisdictions around the world. As a result, seemingly straightforward requests may have unintended consequences. Some of the complex clauses and issues that this panel will discuss include:

• Governing Law, Jurisdiction and Venue: Enforceability of choice of law; the legacy of Wasa v. Lexington; the impact on arbitrators’ power; application of procedural law; and the possible collision of governing law with the negotiated and paid for coverage for punitive damages, ECO/XPL.

• Economic and Trade Sanctions: The recent rise in demand for sanction exclusionary language and the ramifications of wordings currently circulating, including a comparison of the traditional territorial exclusion, the US/OFAC exclusionary wording and the London Market exclusionary wording; the counter forces of anti-blocking legislation; and highlights of trade sanction programs, including discussion of particular countries and jurisdictions).

• Claims Cooperation: An examination of different clauses, why they are requested, how they help or hinder the parties, and the differences between the U.S. and U.K/Europe.

• Commutations and Sunset: Loss notice provisions; Mandatory or permissive commutations; formalized contractual commutation methodologies; appraisal provisions; actuarial arbitrations.

Panel:

Wendy R. Taylor, Vice President and Associate Counsel, Chubb & Son, a division of Federal Insurance Company, Warren, NJ

Myra E. Lobel, Managing Director, Guy Carpenter & Company LLC, NewYork

David A. Silva, Mound CottonWollan & Greengrass, New York

David N. Kragseth, Senior Contract Wording Specialist, Munich Reinsurance America, Inc., Princeton, NJ

12:00 p.m. – 1:30 p.m.

LUNCH

1:30 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.

WHAT, EXACTLY, IS BAD FAITH IN REINSURANCE?

The duty of utmost good faith is a two-way street. Two in-house attorneys will explore the duties and obligations of cedents and reinsurers with respect to underwriting, presentation and acceptance of the risk, renewals, claim handling, claim presentation, and arbitration or litigation.

Panel:

Leslie J. Davis, Vice President & Assistant General Counsel, General Re, and Senior Vice President & General Counsel, US Aviation Underwriters, Stamford, CT

Susan Grondine-Dauwer, General Counsel,R&Q USA, Boston

Jeanne M. Kohler, Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge LLP, New York

2:30 p.m. – 2:45 p.m.

REFRESHMENT BREAK

2:45 p.m. – 3:45 p.m.

DISPUTE RESOLUTION ALTERNATIVES: LITIGATION, MEDIATION, ARBITRATION

In-house counsel will share insights and address the “pros and cons” of the litigation, arbitration and mediation of reinsurance disputes as well as alternative arbitral rules and fora, such as offered by AIRROC. Moderated by Bina T. Dagar, this panel will deliver a balanced view of cedent and assumed perspectives to ADR. The discussions will include:

• Options available to resolve reinsurance disputes

• Benfits and challenges posed by each alternative

• Ad Hoc vs. institutional arbitration/mediation

• Organizations as clearinghouses – ReMedi, AAA, AIRROC, ARIAS, CPR and JAMS

Attendees will be asked to complete a Zoomerang survey ahead of the Conference to be incorporated into the presentation.

Moderator:

Bina T. Dagar, Ameya Consulting, LLC, Livingston,NJ

Panel: Steven Agosta, General Counsel, XLRe America, Stamford, CT

Scott P. Birrell, Vice President and Associate General Counsel, Travelers Insurance Co., Hartford, CT

Anthony Vidovich, Vice President & Assistant General Counsel, Director of Reinsurance Law, The Hartford, Hartford, CT

Michael Zeller, Vice President, Reinsurance Services Division, AIG, Inc., New York

3:45 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.

THE VERY MODEL OF A REINSURANCE ARBITRATOR: INDUSTRY EXECUTIVES SPEAK OUT

The in-house counsel on our faculty will serve on this panel, to be moderated by Fritz K. Huszagh of Hinshaw & Culbertson in Chicago. Among the issues the panelists will address, from the insurers’ and reinsurers’ perspectives, in this potentially lively session are:

• What qualifications should an ideal arbitrator and umpire have?

• What disclosures should they make?

• Is there any value to “certification” of arbitrators and umpires?

• If so, what factors should be considered in the certification process?

• Should arbitrators accept conflicting assignments?

• What is a fair fee for arbitrators and umpires?

• Which expenses are proper and which are not?

• Should arbitrators and umpires be paid non-refundable retainers?

• Should they be paid hearing cancellation fees?

Moderator:

Fritz K. Huszagh, Hinshaw & Culbertson, Chicago

Panel:

Steven Agosta, General Counsel, XL Re America, Stamford, CT

Scott P. Birrell, Vice President and Associate General Counsel, Travelers Insurance Co., Hartford, CT

Ali E. Rifai, General Counsel, Zurich Insurance CMB Division, and former Interim General Counsel, Zurich Insurance Middle East Region

Susan Grondine-Dauwer, General Counsel, R&Q USA, Boston

Leslie J. Davis, Vice President & Assistant General Counsel, General Re, and Senior Vice President & General Counsel, US Aviation Underwriters, Stamford, CT

Thomas Freudenstein, COO, GLOBAL Reinsurance Corporation of America and Director and Attorney at GLOBALE Rückversicherungs-AG, New York and Cologne, Germany

Myra E. Lobel, Managing Director, Guy Carpenter & Company LLC, NewYork

Anthony Vidovich, Vice President & Assistant General Counsel, Director of Reinsurance Law, The Hartford, Hartford, CT

Michael Zeller, Vice President, Reinsurance Services Division, AIG, Inc., NewYork

5:30 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.

NETWORKING COCKTAIL RECEPTION

Day 2, Friday, September 23, 2011

7:30 a.m. – 8:30 a.m.

CONTINENTAL BREAKFAST

8:30 a.m. – 9:30 a.m.

ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS FOR LAWYERS SERVING AS UMPIRES AND ARBITRATORS

An interactive talk on how state rules concerning the ethical obligations of lawyers impact lawyers who are serving as umpires and arbitrators.

Daniel E. Tranen, Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP,Boston

9:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

DEVELOPMENTS IN REINSURANCE AROUND THE WORLD

In an ever-increasingly globalized economy, businesspersons and lawyers need to know what’s happening around the world. Each panelist will cover a different region of the world, providing crucial information about current market trends, governmental regulations, resolution of disputes and the like. (A Refreshment break will be held during this panel from 10:30 – 10:45 a.m.)

Panel:

UK: Peter W. Ambler, Managing Director, Towers Watson (Re)Insurance Brokers Ltd., London

Europe: Thomas Freudenstein, COO, GLOBAL Reinsurance Corp. of America and Director and Attorney at GLOBALE Rückversicherungs-AG, New York & Cologne, Germany

Latin America: M. Machua Millett, Senior Vice President, Senior Advisory Specialist and Global GPL Team Leader, Marsh USA Inc., Boston

Middle East: Ali E. Rifai, General Counsel, Zurich Insurance CMB Division, and former Interim General Counsel, Zurich Insurance Middle East Region

Canada: Stuart S. Carruthers, Stikeman Elliott, Toronto

I hope to see you there!

The Seventh Circuit Issues a Landmark Reinsurance Arbitration Opinion in Trustmark Ins. Co. v. John Hancock Life Ins. Co. (U.S.A.): Part III.A

March 9th, 2011 Arbitration Practice and Procedure, Awards, Ethics, Evident Partiality, Practice and Procedure, Reinsurance Arbitration, United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, United States District Court for the Southern District of New York No Comments »

Should the Second Circuit Reverse the District Court’s Judgment in Scandinavian Reinsurance Co. v. Saint Paul Fire & Marine Ins. Co.?

I. Introduction

Parts I and II of this three-part post discussed Chief Judge Frank H. Easterbrook’s decision in Trustmark Ins. Co. v. John Hancock Life Ins. Co. (U.S.A.), No. 09-3682, 2011 WL 285156 (7^th Cir. Jan. 31, 2011), and said that Trustmark, in conjunction with Sphere Drake Ins. Co. v. All American Life Ins. Co., 307 F.3d 617, 622 (7th Cir. 2002) (Easterbrook, J.), demonstrates that the district court should not have vacated on evident partiality grounds the arbitration award in Scandinavian Reinsurance Co. v. Saint Paul Fire & Marine Ins. Co, No. 09 Civ. 9531(SAS), 2010 WL 653481 (S.D.N.Y. Feb. 23, 2010). This Part III.A explains some of the reasons why that is so. Continue Reading »

How Will Stolt-Nielsen, S.A. v. Animalfeeds Int’l Corp. Change Reinsurance Arbitration Practice?

July 20th, 2010 Arbitration Practice and Procedure, Consolidation of Arbitration Proceedings, Practice and Procedure, Reinsurance Arbitration, United States Supreme Court 1 Comment »

Part V.C

A. Introduction

As was evident from Parts V.A and V.B (here and here), Stolt-Nielsen has dramatically changed the legal landscape on consolidated arbitration. In this Part V.C. we explore the practical and strategic implications of that change.

B. Reinsurers Will Likely Regain the Tactical Advantage They Had Pre-Bazzle

For the last several years since Bazzle, cedents and reinsurers have treated consolidation of arbitration proceedings largely as a given. Courts would usually delegate the consolidation question to the arbitrators, and, in turn, arbitrators would usually order consolidation. After a while, consolidation became something that the parties frequently agreed upon, because in most cases there was little or no point in opposing it. (See Part III, here.)

The advent of large, consolidated proceedings redounded mostly to the cedents’ benefit. In the consumer-class-arbitration context, the theme is usually the many against the one — the consumers versus the company. But in reinsurance arbitration the tables are turned, and the theme is usually the one against the many – the cedent versus the reinsurers participating in one or more treaties.

Consolidated arbitration allowed a cedent to, among other things, aggregate its claims against several reinsurers participating in a multi-year treaty program. Without consolidated arbitration the dollar amounts associated with each claim might be too small to warrant a serious collection effort. But the ability to aggregate ensured that even relatively small balances could be pursued.

Collections were fairly straightforward, and reinsurers who might otherwise have multiple chances before multiple panels to assert certain defenses were forced to make their arguments before a single arbitration panel. The ability of cedents to compel consolidated arbitration probably contributed to reinsurers settling certain claims that they might otherwise have disputed.

Now that courts may be the gatekeepers when a party demands consolidated arbitration, and now that the Supreme Court has imposed some fairly strict standards for establishing consent to class or consolidated arbitration, reinsurers probably have regained the tactical advantage. And the strategy adapted may well be of the “divide and conquer” variety – reinsurers may in appropriate cases force the cedent to commence multiple proceedings and, among other things, obtain multiple bites at the apple on their defenses before multiple panels. Continue Reading »

How Will Stolt-Nielsen, S.A. v. Animalfeeds Int’l Corp. Change Reinsurance Arbitration Practice?

June 18th, 2010 Arbitrability, Arbitration Practice and Procedure, Authority of Arbitrators, Class Action Arbitration, Consolidation of Arbitration Proceedings, Practice and Procedure, United States Supreme Court 5 Comments »

Part V.A

A. Introduction

In this Part V.A of our consolidated-reinsurance-arbitration series, we delve into Stolt-Nielsen’s legal implications on consolidated reinsurance-arbitration practice, focusing on how courts are likely to decide the allocation-of-power question: Who gets to decide whether the parties consented to consolidated arbitration? In Part V.B we shall examine Stolt-Nielsen’s other specific legal and practical implications, focusing on what a party will likely need to show to obtain consolidated arbitration and how frequently consolidated arbitration is likely to be granted after Stolt-Nielsen.

B. Who Gets to Decide Whether the Parties Consented to Consolidated Arbitration?

Readers will recall from Part III (here) that courts interpreted Bazzle as governing the allocation-of-power issue. Now that the Court has said Bazzle never commanded a majority on that issue, and that it remains open, courts must reconsider it not only in the class-, but in the consolidated-arbitration context.

Consolidated arbitrations, like class arbitrations, raise two types of questions: Common-dispute and party-consent questions. We think that courts will likely conclude that both are questions of arbitrability for the court to decide in the first instance, unless the parties clearly and unmistakably agree otherwise. Arbitrators may play a role in resolving contractual ambiguities identified by the court.

1. Who Gets to Decide Common-Dispute Questions?

All consolidated-arbitration questions concern whether at least one arbitration agreement encompasses not only disputes concerning one, but all other contracts at issue. We call this the “common-dispute” question.

In some consolidated-arbitration disputes the “common dispute” question is the only one presented. Suppose reinsurer R enters into two treaties with cedent C, Contracts A and B, each of which incept on the same date and are in force for one year. Contract A’s limits are $1 million per occurrence excess a $500,000 retention. Contract B has per occurrence limits of $2 million excess of $1.5 million. Both contain broad arbitration clauses under which the parties agreed to arbitrate “any dispute arising out of or relating to this contract.” Continue Reading »

How Will Stolt-Nielsen, S.A. v. Animalfeeds Int’l Corp. Change Reinsurance Arbitration Practice?

June 8th, 2010 Arbitrability, Arbitration Practice and Procedure, Authority of Arbitrators, Class Action Arbitration, Consolidation of Arbitration Proceedings, Practice and Procedure, Reinsurance Arbitration, United States Supreme Court 6 Comments »

Part IV

A. Introduction

In Part I (here) we explained why the standard for challenging an award based on its outcome is important in reinsurance arbitration practice. And, after briefly reviewing pre-Stolt-Nielsen law on outcome-based standards of review, we explained how the Court has established for itself and the lower courts a fairly searching standard of review. Part II (here) explored the legal and practical implications of that standard of review.

Part III (here) turned to the other key area that will likely change because of Stolt-Nielsen — consolidated reinsurance-arbitration practice — and discussed the state of consolidation law pre-Stolt-Nielsen. This Part IV discusses Stolt-Nielsen’s rationale for finding that imposing class arbitration on parties whose agreements are silent on that point is inconsistent with the Federal Arbitration Act, and explores how the Court’s ruling may affect consolidated reinsurance-arbitration practice in general.

B. The Supreme Court’s Decides that Imposing Class Arbitration on Parties whose Contracts are Silent on that Score is Inconsistent with the Federal Arbitration Act

When we last left Stolt-Nielsen, the Court had determined that the arbitrators exceeded their authority by issuing an award that was based on their own notions of public policy gleaned from other arbitral decisions imposing class arbitration in the face of silence. When a court vacates an award it has to decide whether to remand the matter to the arbitrators, for Section 10(b) of the Federal Arbitration Act authorizes a court to “direct a rehearing by the arbitrators.” The Court decided not to remand, because “there can be only one possible outcome on the facts,” that is, where the parties’ contracts are undisputedly silent on class arbitration, save for the parties’ agreement to a broad arbitration clause. The Court then set about to explain why that was so. Continue Reading »

How Will Stolt-Nielsen, S.A. v. Animalfeeds Int’l Corp. Change Reinsurance Arbitration Practice?

June 4th, 2010 Arbitrability, Arbitration Practice and Procedure, Authority of Arbitrators, Class Action Arbitration, Consolidation of Arbitration Proceedings, Reinsurance Arbitration, Uncategorized, United States Supreme Court 6 Comments »

Part III

A. Introduction

In Part I (here) we explained why the standard for challenging an award based on its outcome is important in reinsurance arbitration practice. And, after briefly reviewing pre-Stolt-Nielsen law on outcome-based standards of review, we explained how Stolt-Nielsen has established for the lower courts a fairly searching standard of review. Part II (here) explored the legal and practical implications of that standard of review.

This Part III turns to the other key area that will likely change because of Stolt-Nielsen: Consolidated reinsurance-arbitration practice.

As most reinsurance practitioners know, there is a brief history relevant to this subject and that will be the focus of this post. For to fully understand the implications of Stolt-Nielsen on consolidated reinsurance-arbitration practice, it is necessary to understand how the pre-Stolt-Nielsen practice evolved.

Parts IV (here) and V (here, here and here) will address how Stolt-Nielsen will likely change consolidated reinsurance-arbitration practice, and what the implications of those changes are to the industry. Continue Reading »

How Will Stolt-Nielsen, S.A. v. Animalfeeds Int’l Corp. Change Reinsurance Arbitration Practice?

May 25th, 2010 Arbitrability, Arbitration Practice and Procedure, Authority of Arbitrators, Awards, Class Action Arbitration, Class Action Waivers, Consolidation of Arbitration Proceedings, Grounds for Vacatur, Practice and Procedure, Reinsurance Arbitration, United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, United States Supreme Court 6 Comments »

Part I

A. Introduction

Shortly before the United States Supreme Court decided Stolt-Nielsen, S.A. v. AnimalFeeds Int’l Corp., ___ U.S. ___, slip op. (April 27, 2010), we wrote about the implications the case might have on reinsurance arbitration practice. (See our post here.) But since then, you have not heard much from us, other than our brief report (here) about the Supreme Court vacating and remanding to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit the American Express Merchants’ Litigation judgment for further consideration in light of Stolt-Nielsen. One — but by no means the only — reason is that after Stolt-Nielsen was decided, we wrote a comprehensive article on it, which will be published in a subscription-only publication in June.

But that article – while comprehensive in scope – is directed at folks interested in the Federal Arbitration Act in general, not necessarily those interested in reinsurance arbitration in particular. And that’s what we want to cover in this multi-part series: Stolt-Nielsen’s implications on reinsurance arbitration practice.

Stolt-Nielsen affects reinsurance arbitration in two very important ways. First, it has set a fairly liberal standard of review that now applies to commercial arbitration awards in cases where a party asserts that the arbitrators exceeded their powers under Federal Arbitration Act Section 10(a)(4) because of the award’s outcome. That, as we shall see, has all sorts of implications for persons involved in reinsurance arbitrations.

Second, it has changed the rules applicable to consolidated-reinsurance-arbitration practice – or at least it requires a wholesale reevaluation of those rules. That, too, has a number of important implications for reinsurance-arbitration practice.

This Part I of the series explains why the standard for challenging an award based on its outcome is important in reinsurance arbitration practice. And, after briefly reviewing pre-Stolt-Nielsen law on outcome-based standards of review, it explains how Stolt-Nielsen has established for the lower courts a fairly searching standard of review. Part II (here) will delve into what the implications of that standard of review will likely be.

Part III (here) will provide the background necessary to understand how Stolt-Nielsen affects the law applicable to consolidated reinsurance arbitration. Part IV (here) will delve into the details of how Stolt-Nielsen changes – or at least requires reconsideration of – the legal status quo in this area. And Part V will discuss the implications of all of this.

We do not set out to discuss the background of Stolt-Nielsen in any detail or to provide a play-by-play of how the Court decided the case. If you are a regular reader you probably already know the background in detail, and our upcoming article does a pretty good job of mapping out the Court’s reasoning. Instead, we focus our attention on the aspects of the decision that are relevant to the two key subjects of discussion.

But before we delve into what Stolt-Nielsen has to say about the standard of review, we pause briefly to address why the standard of review applicable to an outcome-based challenge is so important in reinsurance and other forms of commercial arbitration. Continue Reading »

Stolt-Nielsen, S.A. v. AnimalFeeds Int’l Corp.: What are the Implications for Reinsurance Arbitration?

April 18th, 2010 Arbitrability, Arbitration Practice and Procedure, Authority of Arbitrators, Class Action Arbitration, Consolidation of Arbitration Proceedings, Reinsurance Arbitration, United States Supreme Court 1 Comment »

We have written extensively on Stolt-Nielsen, S.A. v. AnimalFeeds Int’l Corp., No. 08-1198, a case pending before the United States Supreme Court in which a decision is expected in the not too distant future. Stolt-Nielsen presents the question whether a court or arbitration panel may, consistent with the Federal Arbitration Act, impose class arbitration on a party whose arbitration agreements are silent on that subject. The answer to that question will likely answer a related question that is of special concern to those involved in reinsurance arbitration: Can a panel or court impose consolidated arbitration on a party whose arbitration agreements are silent on that subject? You can read our prior posts on Stolt-Nielsen here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here. (Certain of these posts contain links to articles on Stolt-Nielsen we wrote for Karl Bayer’s Disputing blog.)

But those posts principally concern the legal issues raised by the case, discuss various ways it might be decided, and argue that the correct answer to the question is that a court or arbitration panel cannot, consistent with the Federal Arbitration Act, impose class or consolidated arbitration in the face of silence. To date we have not discussed in any detail the practical implications that the case may have on reinsurance arbitration, if any. So today let’s look at what those implications may be. Continue Reading »

Holman Fenwick Willan and Loree & Loree Give London Talk on U.S. Versus English Arbitration Law

December 7th, 2009 Association of Insurance and Reinsurance Run-Off Companies (AIRROC), English Law, Events, London Market, Practice and Procedure, Reinsurance Arbitration No Comments »

On December 1, 2009 my friend and colleague Costas Frangeskides , a partner at Holman Fenwick Willan (“HFW” or “Holmans”), and I gave a presentation at HFW’s London offices entitled “Reinsurance Arbitration: Approaching Things Differently Either Side of the ‘Pond.’” The program was moderated by Holmans partner Andrew Bandurka, who, like Costas, focuses his practice on reinsurance and insurance dispute resolution. I have known Costas and Andrew for several years as we were co-counsel in a long-running matter handled by Holmans and my former law firm, Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP.

The presentation was designed to provide reinsurance professionals with some insights concerning the differences between U.S. and English reinsurance arbitration practice and procedure. The principal theme was that U.S. arbitration law is designed principally to enforce the parties’ arbitration agreement as written, placing it on the same footing as all other contracts, while English arbitration law favors party automony, but also imposes a greater number of policy-based norms regulating arbitration, which limit to some extent the parties’ ability to structure their dispute resolution procedure exactly as they see fit. Continue Reading »

Posts Tagged ‘Reinsurance Arbitration’

HARRISMARTIN REINSURANCE SUMMIT: FRESH PERSPECTIVES ON THE REINSURANCE FRONT

The Seventh Circuit Issues a Landmark Reinsurance Arbitration Opinion in Trustmark Ins. Co. v. John Hancock Life Ins. Co. (U.S.A.): Part III.A

How Will Stolt-Nielsen, S.A. v. Animalfeeds Int’l Corp. Change Reinsurance Arbitration Practice?

How Will Stolt-Nielsen, S.A. v. Animalfeeds Int’l Corp. Change Reinsurance Arbitration Practice?

How Will Stolt-Nielsen, S.A. v. Animalfeeds Int’l Corp. Change Reinsurance Arbitration Practice?

How Will Stolt-Nielsen, S.A. v. Animalfeeds Int’l Corp. Change Reinsurance Arbitration Practice?

How Will Stolt-Nielsen, S.A. v. Animalfeeds Int’l Corp. Change Reinsurance Arbitration Practice?

Stolt-Nielsen, S.A. v. AnimalFeeds Int’l Corp.: What are the Implications for Reinsurance Arbitration?

Holman Fenwick Willan and Loree & Loree Give London Talk on U.S. Versus English Arbitration Law

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