Vanishing Premium - Lawsuits

  • Q. Do you recall the vanishing premium litigation?
  • A (Wilcox): Very well.
  • Q. Would you agree that the sales practices that were used in the vanishing premium -- in selling those policies was problematic?
  • MR. HIGGINS: Objection. Vague.
  • THE WITNESS (Wilcox): In a limited number of cases, that was true. But again, that's a different question than you asked before.
    • Problematic is not the same as unlawful.
  • MR. PAUL: Q. Do you not believe that the sales practices used -- that were at issue in the vanishing premium issue were unlawful?
  • .....
  • THE WITNESS (Wilcox): There may have been a few instances where it was unlawful. In general, it was not.

--  Deposition of Robert E. Wilcox, Former Utah Insurance Commissioner and Chairman of the Life Disclosure Working Group (NAIC)

66-1 -2012 0313 - LC - Thao v. Midland National - Document 66-1 -Deposition of Robert E. Wilcox - 09-C-1158 - 9p

1990s

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  • 1995 - MDL-1061 - IN RE: Prudential Insurance Company of America Sales Practices Litigation
    • NJ 04/27/1995 08/03/1995 12/17/2003
    • 2.2 Million People, Settlement $2,200 /person
  • 1996 -  MDL -1109 - IN RE: Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Premium Litigation
    • Moskowitz, Barry Ted CAS 02/28/1996 07/17/1996 03/19/2001
  • 1997 - MDL-1186 - IN RE: Minnesota Mutual Life Insurance Company Sales Practices Litigation
    • Doty, David S MN 06/03/1997 10/06/1997 08/28/2000
  • 1998 - LC - Goldberg v Manufacturers Life Insurance (ManuLife) - New York
    • Judge: Beatrice Shainswit, J.
    • 242 A.D.2d 175 (N.Y. App. Div. 1998), 672 N.Y.S.2d 39
    • Similarly, the cause of action under Insurance Law § 2123 for misleading statements made by an insurer's agent or representative, which survived the dismissal motion only as to HSMR and is governed by a three-year Statute of Limitations (CPLR 214), begins to run at the time the false or misleading statements are made.
    • Again, since the alleged misrepresentations were made in connection with the purchase of the policy, the three years began to run in 1988 and expired in 1991.

2000s

  • 2000 - LC - COLE, M.D, v. The Equitable Life Assurance Society oF the United States
    • Decided: April 13, 2000
    • Supreme Court, Appellate Division, First Department, New York.
    • 1998 - LC - Judgment, Supreme Court, New York County (Judge Beatrice Shainswit, J.), entered October 1, 1998, dismissing the complaint,
  • 2002 - LC - Russo v Massachusetts Mut. Life Ins. Co. (192 Misc 2d 349 [Sup Ct, Tompkins County]).
  • 2002 - LC - James Szymanski vs. Boston Mutual Life Insurance Company., 56 Mass. App. Ct. 367, March 7, 2002 - November 7, 2002
    • <WishList> - Victoria E. Fimea, Evan M. Tager, & Peter C. Choharis, for American Council of Life Insurers, amicus curiae, submitted a brief.
  • 2009 - LC - Kaldenbach vs Mutual of Omaha, California
  • Westchester Pennsylvania
  • Friedman v Manufacturer's Life
  • Weathers v. Metropolitan