SECTIONS 12961-12969 - California Statutes

INSURANCE CODE

SECTION 12961-12969

12961. (a) The commissioner shall provide to the Governor, the
Legislature, and to the committees of the Senate and Assembly having
jurisdiction over insurance an analysis of the following types of
actions in the annual report submitted pursuant to Section 12922:
(1) Medical malpractice actions.
(2) Toxic substance tort actions.
(3) Product and design liability actions.
(4) Tort actions in which a public entity is a defendant.
(5) Tort actions involving judgments or settlements of one million
dollars ($1,000,000) or more.
(6) Class action tort actions.
(7) Defamation and invasion of privacy actions.
(8) Other categories of tort actions involving commercial
liability claims as the commissioner deems necessary.
(b) The study may exclude actions in which the only defendant is
an individual sued in his or her private capacity. The study may
exclude limited civil cases.
(c) If any of the information required to be provided by the
parties is confidential under any other provision of law or pursuant
to any court order, the commissioner shall keep that information
confidential and shall limit its analysis of that information to
aggregate data or other analyses which will not reveal the identity
of the parties.

12962. The commissioner shall report to the Governor, the
Legislature, and to the committees of the Senate and Assembly having
jurisdiction over insurance all of the following in the annual report
submitted pursuant to Section 12922:
(a) An analysis of the information required by Sections 674.5,
1857.7, 1857.9, 1864, and 12963, including, but not limited to, all
of the following:
(1) An aggregate and an average for all insurers for each item of
information required by these sections.
(2) The number of insurers reporting policies written for each
class during the calendar year.
(3) For each class, the number of insurers reporting a combined
loss ratio of 100 percent or more, and the number reporting a
combined loss ratio of under 100 percent.
(4) An analysis of adjustments made to loss reserves for prior
years.
(5) The change in any item required to be included by paragraphs
(1) to (4), inclusive, from the immediately prior year.
(b) An analysis of the activities of the Department of Insurance
in implementing the provisions of Proposition 103 on the November 8,
1988, general election ballot, as set forth in Article 10 (commencing
with Section 1861.01) of Chapter 9 of Part 2 of Division 1.
(c) Recommendations and proposals, including suggested
legislation, to protect consumers from arbitrary insurance rates and
practices, to encourage a competitive insurance marketplace, to
provide for an accountable Insurance Commissioner, and to ensure that
insurance is fair, available, and affordable for all Californians.
(d) The requirements of this section shall be satisfied if the
analysis required by this section is included in the annual report to
the Governor required by Section 12922, and a copy of that report is
provided to the Legislature.

12963. Each insurer transacting insurance, as defined in Sections
108 and 116, covering liability for any public entity, as defined in
Section 811.2 of the Government Code, where the public entity is the
named insured, shall report specified data to the commissioner by
type of claim, upon request of the commissioner, which may, for a
specified period, include, but not be limited to, the following:
(a) The total number of insureds.
(b) The total amount of premiums received from insureds, both
written and earned.
(c) The number of claims reported to the insurer and the number of
claims reported closed.
(d) The total number of claims outstanding, together with the
monetary amount reserved for loss and allocated loss expense.
(e) The number of claims closed with payment to the claimant, the
total monetary amount paid thereon, and the total allocated loss
expense paid thereon.
(f) The monetary amount paid on claims with allocated loss expense
paid.
(g) The number of claims closed without payment to the claimant
and the allocated loss expense paid thereon.
(h) The monetary amount reserved on claims incurred but not
reported to the insurer.
(i) The number of lawsuits filed against the insurers insureds.
(j) A distribution by size of payment for those claims closed
showing the number of claims and total amount paid for each monetary
category, as determined by the commissioner.
As used in this section, the type of claims to be reported shall
include, but not be limited to, workers' compensation, liability,
personal injury other than automobile, property damage other than
automobile liability, liability based upon the dangerous condition of
public property, and other general liability claims.

12965. The data and other information required to be filed or
reported under this article may be transmitted by electronic media or
data transmision to the receiver's electronic data processing
system.

12967. (a) (1) The department shall develop and implement a
coordinated approach to gather, review, and analyze the archives of
insurers and other archives and records, using onsite teams and the
oversight committee, to provide for research and investigation into
insurance policies, unpaid insurance claims, and related matters of
victims of the Holocaust or of the Nazi-controlled German government
or its allies, and the beneficiaries and heirs of those victims, and
for losses arising from the activities of the Nazi-controlled German
government or its allies for insurance policies issued before and
during World War II by insurers who have affiliates or subsidiaries
authorized to do business in California. Information compiled shall
be placed in a centralized database for the retention of policy and
claimant data, and the data shall be used to implement this section
and Section 790.15.
(2) The department has an affirmative duty to play an independent
role in representing the interests of Holocaust survivors where
necessary, including the duty to carry out research, investigations,
and advocacy. The department shall cooperate with, participate in,
promote coordination with, and to the extent feasible and consistent
with the purposes of this section, work jointly with the National
Association of Insurance Commissioners and the international
commission on Holocaust survivor claims or any other entity involved
in the documentation, resolution, settlement, or distribution of
insurance claims, including the documentation of unpaid claims and
the distribution of proceeds, and the establishment and maintenance
of a database to contain information relevant to claimants and
documents and historical information. The department shall work to
recover information and records that will strengthen the claims of
California residents.
(3) The department shall employ insurance archaeologists,
economists, attorneys, accountants, and other specialists, in this
country and in Europe, to implement this section. The department
shall work jointly with the National Association of Insurance
Commissioners and other organizations for this purpose. The
department's cooperation with other states shall be for the purpose
of advancing survivors' claims while avoiding duplication of efforts,
and shall be dependent upon contributions by other states.
(4) In order to assure that Holocaust survivors receive the most
aggressive and independent representation possible in pursuit of
their historic claims, in contracting with accounting firms, law
firms, economists, or others to implement this section, the
department shall, to the maximum extent possible, avoid any potential
or actual conflict of interest by doing the following:
(A) Seek and give preference to firms that are entirely free of
any associations with firms representing insurers and nations from
which Holocaust survivors are seeking just treatment of their claims.
(B) If the department finds that it is necessary to contract with
a firm or firms that have conflicts or potential conflicts of
interest, those conflicts or potential conflicts of interest shall be
disclosed to the commissioner, and the following requirements shall
apply:
(i) The contract shall contain a provision that expresses a formal
commitment on the part of the firm to aggressively pursue a maximum
just settlement for Holocaust survivors and their families without
regard to any adverse impacts on insurers, affiliates of insurers,
nations, or others that may have employed the firm or affiliates of
the firm that is contracting with the commissioner to assist in
carrying out the commissioner's responsibilities under this section.
(ii) If any conflict or potential conflict exists between the
firm, or an affiliate of the firm, and an insurer, an affiliate of an
insurer, a nation or others directly or indirectly involving
Holocaust claims, the firm shall disclose both the fact of the
conflict or potential conflict, and all relevant information
describing the nature of the conflict or potential conflict.
(iii) If a conflict or potential conflict exists between the firm,
or an affiliate of the firm, and an insurer, an affiliate of an
insurer, a nation, or others that does not directly or indirectly
involve Holocaust claims, the firm shall disclose the fact of the
conflict or potential conflict and identify the source of the
conflict or potential conflict, but need not describe the particular
circumstances or facts that create the conflict or potential
conflict.
(C) The department may take whatever special measures it deems
necessary to avoid either the appearance or the reality of conflicts
that may undermine public confidence in the integrity of the effort
to secure justice for Holocaust survivors.
(b) The funding of the activities provided for by this section for
the 1998-99 fiscal year shall be from funds transferred pursuant to
subdivision (b) of Section 1523 of the Code of Civil Procedure, which
funds are hereby appropriated to the commissioner for that purpose.
The commissioner shall seek reimbursement of those funds as provided
in subdivision (c).
Funding for subsequent fiscal years shall be subject to the Budget
Act and based on a plan submitted by the commissioner to the
Legislature outlining the plan for reimbursement of expenses of the
department by affected insurers.
Funds made available to implement this section shall be used to
develop and implement a coordinated approach to gather, review, and
analyze the archives of affected insurance groups, and other archives
and records, using onsite teams and the oversight committee. These
funds shall also be used to fund the necessary expenses of the
Holocaust Era Insurance Claims Oversight Committee established in
subdivision (d). The information compiled shall be placed in a
centralized database for the retention of policy and claimant data,
and that data shall be used by the department to implement this
section.
(c) (1) Any funds recovered by the department for the purpose of
reimbursing the state for costs associated with investigation and
enforcement actions under this section shall not be deposited in the
Insurance Fund, but instead shall be delivered to the Controller for
deposit into the General Fund.
(2) To the maximum extent possible, the department shall seek
reimbursement for its costs incurred in implementing this section,
including funds transferred pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section
1523 of the Code of Civil Procedure, from any settlements reached
with affected insurers.
(d) (1) There is established a seven-member Holocaust Era
Insurance Claims Oversight Committee, that shall be known as the
oversight committee, and whose members shall be appointed as follows:
(A) Four members shall be appointed by the Governor.
(B) One member shall be appointed by the President pro Tempore of
the Senate.
(C) One member shall be appointed by the Speaker of the Assembly.
(D) One member shall be appointed by the Commissioner of
Insurance.
(2) The Governor shall designate one of his or her appointees as
the chairperson of the committee.
(3) Each member of the committee shall serve at the pleasure of
the authority that appointed him or her to serve on the committee.
(4) The oversight committee shall be composed of qualified
individuals with experience in Holocaust claims cases, similar
investigations, archival research, and international law. The
oversight committee shall also include Holocaust survivors. No member
of the oversight committee shall have a potential or actual conflict
of interest, or shall be employed by a person who has a potential or
actual conflict of interest.
(5) The appointments shall be expedited because of the urgency due
to survivors' needs.
(6) The oversight committee shall have the following authority and
shall do all of the following:
(A) Review and make recommendations concerning any insurance
settlement negotiation or offer relating to a Holocaust era insurance
claim in which the department is involved.
(B) Review and make recommendations to the commissioner on the
priorities for expenditure of funds and use of resources by the
department for Holocaust era insurance claims related activities.
(C) Recommend whether a proposed settlement of a Holocaust era
insurance claim submitted to the committee pursuant to paragraph (7)
is equitable before the department finalizes the settlement
agreement.
(7) The commissioner, in the event of a proposed settlement of any
policy or group of policies relating to Holocaust era insurance
claims, shall confer with the committee prior to the department
finalizing the settlement agreement. The department may not finalize
a proposed settlement of a Holocaust era insurance claim unless the
committee, pursuant to subparagraph (C) of paragraph (6), recommends
that the proposed settlement is equitable.
(e) The department shall report its progress in implementing this
section and its participation in the identification and resolution of
insurance claims of Holocaust survivors and their beneficiaries and
heirs. The report shall also include an overview of current and
anticipated expenditures in implementing this section. The department
shall report this information to the Governor, the Legislature, and
the insurance and budget committees of the Legislature in the annual
report submitted pursuant to Section 12922.

12968. (a) Every pleading issued by the commissioner to initiate a
formal enforcement action against a licensee under this code, and
every order issued by the commissioner or a court of competent
jurisdiction or other document that resolves a formal enforcement
action, shall be displayed on the department's internet web site, if
the document is a public record that is not exempt from disclosure to
the public pursuant to the California Public Records Act (Chapter
3.5 (commencing with Section 6250) of Division 7 of Title 1 of the
Government Code).
(b) Notwithstanding Section 12969, if an enforcement action
against a licensee is withdrawn, then each pleading, document, or
order against that licensee shall be removed from the department's
Internet Web site within 30 days of the withdrawal of the action. If
a pleading, document, or order contains allegations against multiple
licensees, and the department withdraws all allegations against any
one or more of the licensees, then the department shall post, on its
Internet Web site, a statement in the previously posted pleading,
document, or order that clarifies that the enforcement action against
that specific licensee has been withdrawn.

12969. Any order or pleading posted on the department's Internet
Web site that is related to a disciplinary proceeding or enforcement
action against a person licensed pursuant to Chapter 5 (commencing
with Section 1621) or 7 (commencing with Section 1800) of Part 2 of
Division 1, or that is related to a restricted license, shall be
removed from the site 10 years from the date the disciplinary or
enforcement action becomes final or the date the restriction on the
license is removed, whichever is later, unless other disciplinary
proceedings, enforcement actions, or restrictions are active or
pending, or have been finalized within the previous 10 years, against
the licensee. This section does not apply to any order or pleading
related to an enforcement action resulting in a suspended or revoked
license. This section is intended to apply solely to the department's
Internet Web site and shall not be construed to require the
department to permanently remove any information from its public
record.