Insurance

Drawing on direct industry experience and comprised of insurance litigation, class action, appellate, regulatory, securities, mergers and acquisitions, government relations, employment and corporate attorneys, Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP’s Insurance Practice Group operates as a creative team to provide our clients with dynamic solutions. We serve as national and regional counsel for leading life, health and disability insurance companies, fixed and variable annuity issuers, and brokers and agencies. We can handle any insurance matter, no matter how complex.

Our Insurance Practice Group:

• handles federal and state cases with trial and appellate teams, includes attorneys licensed in 26 states, and has litigation experience in 41 states
• handles all types of dispute resolution, including litigation, pre-litigation counseling and negotiations, arbitration, appraisal and mediation, for all types of claims, including not only contract, fraud and bad faith claims, but commonly extending to the defense of sales practices, rating and underwriting practices, and regulatory compliance matters, and often including class actions, opt-out litigation, multi-district litigation, and coordinated mass action proceedings
• advises insurance companies, reinsurance companies, managing general agents, reinsurance intermediaries, and insurance agencies and brokers on transactional matters, including acquisitions, divestitures and reorganizations, as well as with insurance and securities regulatory compliance issues, product development and approval, and governmental relations

Bradley Arant Boult Cummings insurance attorneys serve as true partners with clients, guiding them through the complex legal issues affecting all aspects of their business. Many of our lawyers have worked in-house for insurers, earning valuable direct experience with the operations of our clients. We are also active in many insurance industry associations and trade groups, ensuring we understand the current trends and issues affecting this sector.

If your company seeks aggressive, think-outside-the-box approaches from its outside counsel, you have come to the right place. As a result of our broad experience, we are able to provide a full range of services to clients, including:

Litigation

We represent life, health and disability insurers, as well as annuity companies, in a variety of litigation matters before state and federal courts, U.S. Courts of Appeal, and the United States Supreme Court. We work with our clients to resolve disputes through pre-litigation counseling and negotiations, arbitration, and mediation. Our work includes litigation involving coverage issues, policyholder disputes, ERISA, sales practices, fraud and bad faith, and rating and underwriting practices.

Bradley Arant Boult Cummings is nationally recognized for its class action, coordinated mass action and appellate experience. We regularly represent insurers in opposing class certification and at trial. We have extensive arbitration experience. Our appellate attorneys, many of whom have clerked for the U.S. Supreme Court as well as other federal and state appellate courts, have the distinct set of skills required by this specialized area of practice.

Regulatory

Insurers operate in a highly regulated environment that impacts many areas of their business. We advise insurance companies, reinsurance companies, managing general agents, reinsurance intermediaries and insurance agencies and brokers on a broad range of regulatory issues. These relationships include handling state insurance department inquiries, examinations, holding company compliance, insurance insolvencies, and rate and form filings.

We regularly counsel clients in connection with the licensing of traditional carriers, third party administrators, agents, brokers and claims adjusters. We also advise on the structure and formation of captive insurance companies, risk retention groups, purchasing groups, group funds, and other alternative risk transfer vehicles.

Corporate

We draw on our broad industry experience to help insurers and related entities grow and sustain their business operations. Our attorneys serve as trusted advisors to clients as they expand through the acquisition of other companies or portfolios of business, which can involve public mergers. The firm has also incorporated, organized and licensed insurance companies to underwrite various types of insurance, including health, prescription drug, professional liability, automobile liability, general liability and worker’s compensation. This work includes advising committees regarding corporate governance, obtaining approvals from state insurance departments, preparing securities disclosure and filing documents, and securing certificates of authority to operate as an insurance company.

Government Relations

Members of the Bradley Arant Boult Cummings Insurance Practice Group are actively involved in government relations at both the state and federal levels. We assist clients in monitoring legislative activity, drafting legislation, and lobbying in connection with proposed changes in legislation and administrative rule-making.

List of Representative Clients/Experience

Aetna Life Insurance Company
AIG
AXA Equitable Life Insurance Company
Capital One
Conseco Companies
Genworth Financial
Harper Industries
The Lafayette Life Insurance Company
Metropolitan Life Insurance Company
Old Mutual Life Insurance Company
Pacific Life Insurance Company
Principal Financial Group
Southland National Insurance Co.
Torchmark Corporation
VIVA Health, Inc.