I’d rather be posting my recipe for Cranberry Daiquiris than tackling anti-trust issues – and probably should do both as there is little entertainment value in the subject.
If you read my earlier post and want more background, I suggest this tag-on of Sop’s from late summer when he stepped in to help me find my way back from an unexpected detour by Road Home.
Although today’s ruling was in federal court; the Katrina insurance antitrust case was filed in State court – and for good reason. Louisiana has a State anti-trust law, one of the defendants insurers is domiciled in Louisiana, and the alleged price fixing took place in the State. However, the defendants were successful in their effort to move the case to federal court; and, it appears from the Ex Parte consent motions on the docket, that Buck up Buddy had also been successful in resolving his concerns about Foti’s contracts with private attorneys.
The State’s interest was represented by one of the staff attorneys from the AG’s office, Jane Johnson, who filed a reply memorandum in support of motion to sever as suggested in a related Fifth Circuit ruling on the case now known as Louisiana ex rel Caldwell v Allstate.
The Attorney General proposes what the 5th Circuit ordered, that this Honorable Court decide on the best course of action and is suggesting severing the claim for injunctive relief because 1) that allows more options for this Court in deciding how to proceed, and 2) that is what the Fifth Circuit suggested…
Allstate is only one of the Defendants. Others insurers named as defendants include State Farm, USAA, Lafayette, Farmers, and Standard Fire. In addition to the six insurers, there are four other defendants – McKinsey & Company; XACTWARE; Marshall & Swift /Beockh, owner of Integriclaim; and Insurance Services Office, Inc – familiar names to SLABBED readers who have followed the scheme. Continue reading “If you can’t trust anti-trust, what can you trust?”