Recent Publications

Insurance Commissioner Determines Geographic Restriction on New Homeowners Business Complies with Maryland Law
February 2008

The Maryland Insurance Commissioner, in a 50-page decision, recently ruled that an insurer (represented by Bryan Bolton) did not violate Maryland law by imposing a geographic restriction on underwriting new homeowners insurance in areas prone to catastrophic losses.

State Regulatory Oversight of the Role and Responsibilities of an Insurance Company's Corporate Directors
Spring 2007

Whenever state regulators conduct a financial examination of an insurance company, they assess corporate governance against established insurance regulatory standards. In the Spring 2007 issue of the Journal of Insurance Regulation, Funk & Bolton's Donna Imhoff published an article that discusses those standards as they relate to corporate directors, and describes new standards the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) recently adopted for all insurers.

The article is an educational tool for corporate directors. It discusses current regulatory standards, the role of directors in risk management, and new guidelines that regulators use in assessing director activities, as published in the 2007 edition of the NAIC's Financial Condition Examiners Handbook.

To obtain a copy of Corporate Governance: A Self-Evaluation Tool for Insurance Company Directors, contact Donna Imhoff.

More publications or law bulletins.

News and Notes

Stephen P. Carney certified by ARIAS-US as arbitrator
April 2008
Funk & Bolton is pleased to announce that Stephen P. Carney (Of Counsel with the Firm) is now an ARIAS-US certified insurance and reinsurance arbitrator, resident in the Baltimore office. Mr. Carney is available for insurance, reinsurance and busines arbitrations and mediations.

Santiago Joins Insurance Regulation Group
January 2008
Fred Santiago, formerly an insurance regulator for close to two decades, has joined the Insurance Regulation Group as a paralegal. Prior to joining the firm, Fred was the manager of compliance and products for Montgomery Mutual Insurance Company, a subsidiary of Liberty Mutual Insurance Group. Previously, Fred held a variety of positions at the Maryland Insurance Administration, most recently as Director of Property and Casualty. Fred has extensive and diverse experience in insurance regulation including filing and rating methodology requirements, underwriting and termination provisions, consumer complaint issues, market conduct examinations, and a host of other compliance issues. He is a graduate of the University of Baltimore.

Breadth of Local Government Practice Group Enhanced
January 2008
We are pleased to announce the addition of Victor K. Tervala to the Local Government Practice Group. Mr. Tervala has been involved with Maryland local government and county home rule issues for more than 25 years and is the author of Home Rule Options in Maryland (2001). During his tenure at University of Maryland's Institute for Governmental Service and Research, he routinely advised elected and appointed officials and citizens regarding local government structure and authority. Funk & Bolton continues to offer one of the largest and most sophisticated local government practices in Maryland. To read more, click here.