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Case ID: 3510 | Insurance | 06/29/2004
A class action has been filed against Oregon’s State Accident Insurance Fund Corporation (SAIF) on behalf of Oregon businesses that paid the company workers’ compensation premiums, which allege that the agency has repeatedly broken state workers’ comp law in its attempts to dominate Oregon's workers’ compensation insurance market. The action also alleges that SAIF is holding as much as $700 million that it should have rebated to policyholders. The action seeks an order forcing the company to give back the money it claims belongs to the policyholders.
SAIF is Oregon's state-owned workers’ compensation insurance agency. Between 1990 and 2000, the company allegedly paid "dividends," amounting to $734 million to policyholders-- these were actually rebates, according to the lawsuit, representing a surplus in SAIF’s budget. The action alleges that the surplus is actually much larger than the company represented. This is not the first lawsuit of this sort-- one was filed on behalf of SAIF policyholders after the state legislature spent $80 million of SAIF’s reserves in an early-1980s budget crisis. SAIF policyholders eventually won $225 million in that one, including interest. A whistle-blower's affidavit recently filed in the present case, charging top SAIF officials with destroying documents, prompted Oregon's governor to call for an investigation and led the judge to schedule a court hearing on the matter. The newly surfaced evidence could also lead the state ethics panel to widen its investigation into whether SAIF failed to report its spending on lobbying. The testimony of former public affairs manager Mark Cohen was submitted to Marion County Circuit Court Judge Paul Lipscomb. He responded by setting a July 2, 2004, hearing date to determine whether SAIF acted in contempt of earlier court decisions requiring them to make all their records available to the public. Destroying public records is a class A misdemeanor punishable by a fine of $5,000 and up to one year in jail. Lipscomb also ordered the state-owned workers' compensation insurer not to destroy or conceal records. Cohen's sworn testimony alleges that SAIF officials destroyed, suppressed, and prevented the disclosure of public records related to SAIF's lobbying and political activities - which have been the subject of an intense battle between the state-owned worker's compensation insurer and its biggest rival, Liberty Northwest, a private insurer. Liberty and other businesses, through the group Oregonians for Sound Economic Policy, have been pushing for the release of such documents as part of the lawsuit against SAIF. Liberty Northwest and its allies charge that SAIF has an unfair competitive advantage with its state-funded reserve account and tax-free status - an advantage that SAIF has been able to defend by using some of its assets to hire high-priced public-relations and political consultants. At Lawcash.com, it is our goal to keep you informed about important legal cases, class actions and settlements. Our lawyers offer free legal evaluations in tort cases, class actions, personal injury, and other lawsuits because we are dedicated to helping you resolve your legal complaints. Other Insurance Cases of Interest The class has been certified in an action filed against State Farm Automobile Insurance Company on behalf of Nebraskans who were hurt in auto accidents, and who allege that the company overcharged them for managed care medical coverage under the guise of traditional indemnity medical coverage. The action alleges that State Farm overcharged consumers 15% to 20% for their coverage, in violation of Nebraska's Consumer Protection Act and the Deceptive Trade Practices Act. A class action has been filed against Pacific Life Insurance Company by persons in the United States who, through their ownership of a Pacific Life annuity or insurance product, held units of any Pacific Life sub-account invested in mutual funds which included foreign securities. The actions claim that the defendants violated federal securities laws by utilizing market timing strategies to increase company profits to the detriment of annuity holders. A class action lawsuit has been filed in the Middle District Court of Florida against Mayo Clinic Jacksonville for violations of Florida's Uniform Deceptive Trade Practices Act. Class members seek monetary damages, injunctive and equitable relief, attorney's fees and costs of the litigation. Whenever a home, a car, a business or any other property is damaged, a person instinctively calls his or her insurance agent to get started on the repairs. InSPIRE Insurance Solutions and plaintiffs in three class actions against it have reached a consolidated settlement for 4.8 Million dollars. Under the terms of the settlement, InSPIRE will create an interest bearing 4.8 million dollar fund from which settlements will be disbursed to class action plaintiffs. The settlement will not become final until it has been reviewed and approved by the court at a fairness hearing scheduled for Match 9, 2005. Class members who want to participate in the settlement have until April 7, 2005 to file a proof of claim form. Proof of claim forms are available on the settlement site. Companies that have allowed market timing trading have been in the news lately. Several class actions have been filed against global professional services firm Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE: MMC) and certain of its officers and directors by stockholders who purchased the company's common stock between January 3, 2000, through November 3, 2003. The actions claim that the defendants violated federal securities laws by issuing a series of material misrepresentations to the market over this time period, thereby artificially inflating the price of the company's securities. The stockholders seek to recover compensatory damages for the loss of value of their stock. |
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