Reinsurance and Insurance Arbitration - Case Notes Archive
July 29, 2009: Federal Court Rules That Party-Arbitrator’s Resignation Due To Illness And Subsequent Recovery Does Not Require Arbitration To Start Anew
April 9, 2009: Second Circuit Rules 2-To-1 That Panel Award of Bad Faith Attorney’s and Arbitrator’s Fees
Is Not Trumped by Conflicting Arbitration Clause
November 25, 2008: Second Circuit Rules that FAA Does Not Authorize Arbitrators to Issue Third-Party Pre-Hearing Document Subpoenas
April 21, 2008: California Federal District Court Rejects Extension of “Extraordinary” Tort Liability Remedy to Alleged Breach of Reinsurance Contract
April 18, 2008: Federal Court Rules Public Right to Access Requires Unsealing of Arbitration Awards Filed in Support of Confirmation Petition
February 6, 2008: The Functus Officio Doctrine And The Finality (Or Not) Of Partial “Final” Awards
September 6, 2007: Pennsylvania Federal Court Rejects “First in Time” Rule to Determine Which of Four Arbitration Panels Should Decide Consolidation Question
August 29, 2007: 7th Circuit Rules that Party-Arbitrator Appointment Deadlines Must Be Strictly Enforced
August 27, 2007: California Supreme Court Rules that Nonparty Insurer’s Reinsurance Agreements Are Not Discoverable by Plaintiffs
June 12, 2007: New York Appellate Division Rejects Cedent’s Post-Settlement Reinsurance Allocation as Unreasonable and Inconsistent with Its Pre-Settlement Allocation Positions
June 12, 2007: 3rd Circuit Rules that Consolidation Is for the Arbitrators, Not the Court, to Decide
March 27, 2007 : Party Refusing to Sign Arbitration Panel Hold Harmless Agreement Ordered to Do So by Court
January 18, 2007 : Summary Case Note – En Banc Fifth Circuit Denies Vacatur for Alleged “Evident Partiality” Due to Arbitrator Nondisclosure of Past Relationship with Counsel
September 29 , 2006: Summary Case Note – Federal Court Breaks Umpire Selection Deadlock
May 31 , 2006: Summary Case Note – Texas Court Reaffirms Arbitral Immunity From Civil Liability Notwithstanding Neutral Arbitrator’s Nondisclosure
April 4, 2006 : Summary Case Note -- 7th Circuit Rules That Arbitrators Must Decide Consolidation Question in First Instance
December 2, 2005: Enforcing Discovery Orders – First Circuit Upholds Panel’s Negative Inference” Sanction
August 30, 2005: When Declaratory “Final Awards” Clash With the Functus Officio Doctrine
August 3, 2005: Reference to “Arbitration Clause” in Binding Placement Slip Sufficient to Compel Arbitration
June 13, 2005: Arbitration Clause Does Not Require “All-American” Umpire Slates
December 28 , 2004: Treaty's Access to Records Clause Does Not Constitute a Blanket Waiver of Attorney-Client Privileg e
December 9, 2004: Sealing Confidential Arbitration Documents – Federal Court Takes A Cautious Approach
October, 2004: Federal Magistrate Judge Appoints "Most Qualified" Umpire after Deadlock
September 16, 2004: When an Arbitrator Dies: Federal Court Rules That the Arbitration Must "Begin Afresh"
July 19, 2004: Arbitrators, Not the Court, Must Decide Scope of Counterclaims to Be Resolved In an Arbitration
July 9, 2004: Consolidation of Related Reinsurance Disputes: Who Decides – Arbitrators or The Courts?
March 15, 2004: 2nd Circuit Rules That Reinsurer Must Follow Cedent's Post-Settlement Allocation
March 12, 2004: 3rd Circuit Rules That FAA Does Not Authorize Use of Pre-Hearing Non-Party Document Discovery Subpoenas in Arbitrations
February 3, 2004: Seventh Circuit Rejects As Unreasonable Motion to Remand for Clarification Eight Years after Panel Award
January 14, 2004: No "Second Bite at the Apple" for Losing Party to Challenge Arbitral Award's Treaty Interpretation and Application a Year Later
September 30, 2003: Facultative Reinsurer Not Bound to Follow Cedent’s $257 Million Non-Products Asbestos Single Occurrence Settlement Allocation
October 6, 2003: Court Appoints Umpire When Party-Arbitrators Reach Impasse
August 26, 2003: D.J. Expense Claims under Facultative Certificates Rejected by Second Circuit
June 3, 2003: 6th Circuit Vacates Award Ordering Party’s Payment to Nonparty
May 13, 2003: 8th Circuit Rules New Panel Need Not Be Appointed and Arbitration Commenced Anew When Arbitrator Resigns
April 7, 2003: U.S. Supreme Court Declines to Hear Appeal of 7th Circuit's Sphere Drake “Evident Partiality” Decision</p>
March 31, 2003: Multi-Year Fac Certs’ Liability Limits Trump “Follow Form” Clause – Annualization Denied Despite Conflicting Settlement Allocation
February 20, 2003: House of Lords Rules in Phoenix Film Financing Case on Insurers' Claims of Fraudulent Misrepresentation and Nondisclosure
January 3, 2003: Panel's Monetary Award Upheld as not "Indefinite" or the Product of a "Rough Justice" Compromise
December
17, 2002: Reinsurer's Action to Recover
Claims Payments Erroneously Billed by Cedent Not Arbitrable
Under "Narrow" Fac Cert Arbitration Clause
October
9 , 2002: 7th Circuit Reverses Vacation of Award
for "Evident Partiality" Due to Party-Appointed
Arbitrator's Failure to Make Full Disclosure
September
25, 2002: Court Refuses to Bar Depositions of
Reinsurer's Top Executives Regarding Unicover and MGA
Policies
September
9, 2002: 8th Circuit Rejects "Anti-Follow-The-Fortunes" Argument
and Adopts Familiar "Bad Faith" Standard
August
30, 2002: Fifth Circuit Holds That Court Is Without
Authority to Disqualify Arbitrator Prior to Award's Issuance
August
6, 2002: Uruguayan Reinsurer Not Immune from
Arbitration Panel Pre-hearing Security Order
August
2, 2002: Party-Appointed Arbitrator's Prior Adverse
Position Regarding Similar Dispute Held Not "Evident
Partiality"
August
1, 2002: Second Circuit Holds That Reinsurers'
Rescission Action Is Not Subject to Fac Certs' "Narrow" Arbitration
Clause
July
11, 2002: "Follow the Settlements" Doctrine
Held Inapplicable When Reinsurer Funded Settlement under
a Reservation of Rights
July
29, 2002: Reinsurance Agreement Discoverable
by Policyholder but Not Cedent Reinsurer Underwriting
and Claims Communications
June
26, 2002: 2nd Circuit Refuses to Compel Arbitration
When Reinsurer Contended That Its Agents Had No Bindng Authority
June
12, 2002: Retrocedent in Informal Fronting Deal Compelled
to Arbitrate with Line Slip Pool Cedents
June
7, 2002: Argentine Reinsurer Not Immune from Pre-Judgment
Security Order
June
3, 2002: “Follow-the-Settlements"" Doctrine
Not Inherent in 1974 Casualty Fac Cert Based on Industry Custom
and Practice
May
17, 2002: Reinsurance Arbitration Award Vacated Due
to Arbitrator "Evident Partiality"
May
2, 2002: Film Financing Litigation Stayed on Federal
Abstention Grounds
May
1, 2002: Certain Expert Testimony in D.J. Expense
Litigation Inadmissible
April
15, 2002: Umbrella Policy Covers Liability Otherwise
Capped by Primary Policy's Household Exclusion in Absence
of Explicit "Follow Form" Clause Maryland's Highest
Court Rules
March
29, 2002: "Follow the Settlements" Doctrine
Applied to Cedent's Asbestos Loss Allocation Methodology Based
on Seven Provinces Decision
March
29, 2002: Life Reinsurance Agreement Not Executory
as to Claims Presented by Insolvent's Policyholders Still
Living as of Liquidation Date
March
12, 2002: Arbitrator Incapacity 12 Months after Panel
Convened Does Not Require Appointment of New Panel to Fill
Vacancy
March
11, 2002: "Follow the Settlements" Clause
Held Not Implicit
in a Fac Cert as a Matter of Law
March
5, 2002: Party Must Be "Aggrieved" by an
Alleged Failure, Neglect or Refusal of an Adverse Party to
Arbitrate Before a Federal Court Has Jurisdiction to Compel
Arbitration under the Convention Act