Monday Deadline for MPC Meeting Hotel Reservations
The cut-off date for hotel reservations for the February MPC meeting in Phoenix is Monday, January 30, 2006. If you have not made reservations at the Ritz-Carlton, Phoenix or registered for the meeting, we urge you to do so as soon as possible. Hotel information and online registration can be found on the meeting Web page. After the reservation deadline, we can no longer guarantee room availability or the NOLHGA rate of $189 a night plus tax.
The MPC meeting will take place February 20-22, with the MPC General Session scheduled for the afternoon of February 21 and the morning of February 22. A schedule of events and other meeting details can be found on the meeting Web page. If you have any trouble accessing the page, please contact Dan Hicks at [email protected] or 703.787.4112. Questions concerning the MPC meeting should be directed to Sean McKenna at [email protected] or 703.787.4106.
Staff Contact - Sean McKenna AMS Life Insurance Company (Ariz.)Arizona Supreme Court Denies Receiver's Petition for Review in Professional Negligence Case
In a November 2005 ruling, the Arizona Supreme Court denied a petition seeking to reinstate a judgment awarded to the receiver that had been overturned by the Arizona Court of Appeals.
The original litigation was filed by the receiver in 1997 alleging multiple counts of fraud and professional negligence arising in connection with the accounting and actuarial services provided to AMS Life from 1983 to 1991. Before reaching trial in June 2001, the receiver obtained settlements from several of the defendants, resulting in recoveries of approximately $8.255 million for the estate. The matter then proceeded to trial against the remaining defendants.
A judgment for the receiver in the amount of $17.5 million was entered in September 2001. In February 2002, the receiver received an additional award of costs and sanctions of $1.5 million, bringing the total judgment to more than $19 million plus interest. As set forth in the trial court's findings, the defendants provided virtually all of the actuarial services for AMS Life during the period at issue, including quarterly reserve calculations and year-end certification of reserves, and further provided information for annual statements. The trial court went on to conclude that the defendants knew or should have known that AMS Life was totally dependent upon the defendants to provide timely and accurate actuarial services and that their repeated failure to do so was a violation of professional obligations to AMS Life, the state regulators, and policyholders. The defendants challenged the trial court's award, beginning a lengthy appeal process.
In February 2005, the Arizona Court of Appeals entered an order reversing the trial court's award of judgment for the receiver based on that court's finding of insufficient evidence of actual reliance on false and misleading actuarial opinions issued by the defendants. In March 2005, the receiver filed a Petition for Review with the Arizona Supreme Court, seeking reinstatement of the judgment award in this case. The Petition for Review was denied on November 29, bringing an end to this nine-year litigation.
With this estate litigation now complete, the receiver will be focusing his efforts in 2006 on preparing a final accounting and closing this estate. Staff will continue to dialogue with the receiver concerning distributions on guaranty association claims and will support the receiver's efforts to close this estate.
Task Force Chair - Luther Hill; Staff Contact - Joni Forsythe States General Life Insurance Company (Tex.)All In-force Business Transferred to New Era Life
NOLHGA and the affected state life and health insurance guaranty associations have transferred all of the in-force policies of States General to New Era Life Insurance Company (Texas), pursuant to two assumption reinsurance transactions that closed July 1, 2005, and January 2, 2006. For the guaranty associations affected by this business, the toll-free customer service number for New Era is listed below:
New Era Life Insurance Companies
P.O. Box 4884
Houston, TX 77210-4884
Customer Service: 800.552.7879