At the Intersection: Congratulations to ELANY at 50!([FOREWORD])

AuthorAcunto, Steve

Cannot resist using this space, in which insurance and its intersection with social trends comes to you fortnightly, to note that social civility and successful insuring are related, even interdependent on so many levels. When I read of an utter disgrace - such as the bills providing for late term, I mean late, late term abortions - I am compelled to descry the encroaching sense of existential meaninglessness that such a law augurs. Human life is now something of a matter of convenience. At the same time a bill to allow assisted suicide was introduced. I awakened expecting to hear that a new bill was introduced allowing abortions for kids in first grade who cannot pass a spelling test and thus burden their mothers' competing right to comfort. It is a runaway social train and it will affect all of us in one form or another, as conscientious, sentient citizens and God fearing people. As professionals in insurance, our social fabric matters. We must insist that it is stable and worth something. Please share your thoughts.... A liberal (in the sense of legal interpretation) New York appellate court issued a significant decision for New York policyholders, making clear--for the first time--just what is the minimal standard needed to plead a bad faith claim. This is a real beauty. Reversing the Supreme Court's decision in D.K Property, Inc. v. National Union Fire Insurance Company of Pittsburgh, Pa., which had dismissed D.K. Property's claim for consequential damages for breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing, the First Department rejected AIG's attempt to impose a heightened standard of pleading of bad faith claims-an argument often made by insurance companies and accepted by courts. Additionally, in what stands to be another significant and unheard of move by a New York court, the First Department rejected AIG's attempt to dismiss D.K. Property's claim for affirmative attorney fees through a backdoor "duplicative" argument on the grounds that AIG did not appeal that portion of the Supreme Court's decision. Not such great news for insurers in the abortion capital of America.... Someone is rational, however. Michael Bloomberg called efforts to legalize marijuana "perhaps the stupidest thing anybody has ever done." Speaking at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland recently, Bloomberg said on WBNG-TV: "We have a different kind of problem in America, for example. Last year, in 2017, 72,000 Americans [overdosed] on...

To continue reading

Request your trial

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT