1997 1024 - WSJ - MONY Wins Dismissal of Suit Over 'Vanishing Premium' Policies, by Leslie Scism - [link]
The company, popularly known as MONY, won a dismissal this week of a national class-action lawsuit that is similar to more than 30 suits pending against major life insurers.
... in the MONY case, New York state judge Beatrice Shainswit found that..
while thousands of consumers nationally "have been deeply aggrieved by what they perceive to be a grave injustice perpetrated upon them by the numerous insurance companies who contrived, and profited, from the "vanishing premium" concept," this "ill-conceived product" doesn't necessarily "equate to fraud, or any other actionable wrongdoing, which can be compensated for in a court of law."
Her 29-page decision debunks key arguments in almost all of the suits. - <WishList = "29-page decision">
She said insurance agents don't have a fiduciary relationship with their clients, as plaintiffs' lawyers contend.
She also maintained that sales documents stating that dividends aren't guaranteed at high levels were sufficient warning to consumers that they couldn't rely on other promotional literature showing rosy dividend scenarios.
[ACLI] - "This case, being typical of many other baseless class actions, will be cited as authority in other jurisdictions for dismissing those frivolous cases," predicted Phillip Stano, senior counsel for the American Council of Life Insurance, a trade group in Washington. "And we congratulate MONY for standing up to those who sought to intimidate them into a frivolous settlement."
2003 0215 - The National Journal - Pumping New Life Into the ACLI LOBBYING; Vol. 35, No. 7, by Robert Gettlin - 4p - p78-81
On top of that, the president's new retirement and lifetime savings plan would further devastate the annuity business. If adopted, the plan would allow an individual to invest up to $7,500 a year in tax-exempt accounts. One advantage of an annuity is that it allows tax-deferred growth of assets, but the tax advantage of an annuity would be unattractive compared to those of tax-free dividends and unrestricted tax-exempt withdrawals from a retirement account.
So all of Keating's managerial and persuasive abilities and the strengths of his ties to the Bush team are being tested right away. Recently, Sy Sternberg, chairman and CEO of New York Life Insurance Company, reinforced just how much the ACLI's 400 member companies are counting on the former governor. "He said, 'Frank, you're our guy in Washington. We don't have anyone else,' "Keating said in an interview from an office that enjoys a postcard view of the Capitol.
Unlike banks, which rely on the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Federal Reserve Board to look after their interests as well as to regulate, and securities firms, which enjoy a similar relationship with the Securities and Exchange Commission, insurance companies have no federal agency. Insurance is state-regulated, which heightens the role of trade groups like the ACLI.
2001 0112 - WSJ - For Some, Bush Loyalty Is a One-Way Street, By Paul A. Gigot - [link]
As for Oklahoma Gov. Keating, he merely campaigned for Mr. Bush in 25 states last fall. His reward was to see personal financial details leaked to the media as the excuse for rejecting him as attorney general.
2003-2010 - ACLI, American Council of Life Insurers, President
2011-2015 - American Bankers Association, President
2016 0831 - MorningConsult - Life Insurers Do Not Pose a Systemic Risk to the Nation’s Economy, By Dirk Kempthorne, president and chief executive officer of the ACLI - [link]