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The Impact of Bad-Faith Arguments on Forum Battles
Policyholders and insurers alike regularly find themselves in protracted forum battles because, rightly or wrongly, the parties view choice of forum as having a major impact on the choice of state law to be applied to important coverage issues. Coverage law, of course, varies significantly among jurisdictions, and choice of law actually can be outcome determinative in certain cases. In contesting such forum battles, policyholders have a tool that may be underutilized ' the argument that insurers engage in bad faith when they file pre-emptive declaratory judgment actions to attempt to seize control of forum selection.
At first, this may seem counterintuitive, because insurers often file declaratory judgment actions to avoid exposure to bad faith, particularly after they have agreed to defend their policyholders under reservations of rights. There are, however, circumstances in which an insurer's filing of a declaratory judgment action can give rise to a bad-faith claim that a policyholder may use to its advantage in a forum battle. This article analyzes instances when an insurer's institution of a declaratory judgment action demonstrates bad faith such that it weighs against the insurer's choice of forum.
The DOJ's Corporate Enforcement Policy: One Year Later
The DOJ's Criminal Division issued three declinations since the issuance of the revised CEP a year ago. Review of these cases gives insight into DOJ's implementation of the new policy in practice.
The DOJ's New Parameters for Evaluating Corporate Compliance Programs
The parameters set forth in the DOJ's memorandum have implications not only for the government's evaluation of compliance programs in the context of criminal charging decisions, but also for how defense counsel structure their conference-room advocacy seeking declinations or lesser sanctions in both criminal and civil investigations.
Use of Deferred Prosecution Agreements In White Collar Investigations
This article discusses the practical and policy reasons for the use of DPAs and NPAs in white-collar criminal investigations, and considers the NDAA's new reporting provision and its relationship with other efforts to enhance transparency in DOJ decision-making.
Bankruptcy Sales: Finding a Diamond In the Rough
There is no efficient market for the sale of bankruptcy assets. Inefficient markets yield a transactional drag, potentially dampening the ability of debtors and trustees to maximize value for creditors. This article identifies ways in which investors may more easily discover bankruptcy asset sales.
A Lawyer's System for Active Reading
Active reading comprises many daily tasks lawyers engage in, including highlighting, annotating, note taking, comparing and searching texts. It demands more than flipping or turning pages.