Day: July 6, 2009

Once the property is lost, then how do I regain it to lose it again with water?

Judge Randolph’s question was the first thing that came to mind after reading Did insurers testimony show guilt? h/t Y’all Politics

Recent arguments in a Mississippi Supreme Court case offer proof that private insurers are improperly pushing storm damage claims from their books to the government-backed flood insurance program, Rep. Gene Taylor, D-Bay St. Louis, said in a telephone interview.

“It confirmed, under oath, what we have been saying all along: that the taxpayers got stuck with paying bills that the insurance industry should have paid,” said Taylor, who has long maintained that it’s a conflict of interest for insurers to be responsible for handling homeowner policies and flood policies for the same property…

With Nationwide’s startling admission, too little has been made of the testimony given by USAA attorney Charles Copeland, AKA the King of Flip-Flops.

Charles Copeland, a lawyer for USAA, a Texas-based financial services company and insurer, did not go as far as Landau but said that a policyholder would not be entitled to collect if the storm damage were due to “the combined concurrent force of wind and water.”

In a June 18 letter to Taylor, Copeland said that USAA does not shift coverage for wind damage to the flood insurance program.

“Shift” is the key word here – USAA does not “shift” because, according to Copeland’s testimony, Congress intended for the flood insurance program to pay for more than “flood only” damage. Continue reading “Once the property is lost, then how do I regain it to lose it again with water?”

A Few 4th of July Weekend Odds and Ends

039 CropI took these pictures Friday afternoon after noticing our occasional visitors decided to drop by in the 100 degree heat. They were partial to both shade and a certain kind of weed that sprouted along with the grass in the newly filled portion of my yard.

055 CropAfter I approached too closely with the camera one deer of the group decided to take a peek back at me before disappearing into the woods.

056 CropOne final pose before rejoining the herd.

But on the coast you can’t have a proper 4th of July celebration without including the sound in the festivity equation. So Friday night we went floundering. The wind was a bit too stiff at 10:00PM and we didn’t see very much beside a few needle fish. Continue reading “A Few 4th of July Weekend Odds and Ends”

keeping score – one settlement, one compromise, and one heel-digging response

Hasbrouck v Nationwide, a case recently introduced on SLABBED as one of the sequence of events in no particular order, has reached settlement according to a note on the docket.

Magistrate Judge Anderson stuck a compromise issued an Order in O’Keefe v State Farm – agreeing with O’Keefe on the overly broad nature of State Farm motion for protective order but granting the motion with O’Keefe’s more restrictive version.

Order pursuant to hearing conducted on 6/30/09: denying Plaintiffs’ 89 Motion to Quash the subpoena duces tecum [#89] served on USF&G; granting Defendant State Farm’s 100 Motion for Protective Order only to the extent that the proposed Protective Order submitted by Plaintiffs shall be entered. Defendants’ Motion to Quash Excess Discovery [#111] taken under advisement; separate Order shall be entered. Signed by Magistrate Judge Linda R. Anderson on 7/2/09. (ACF) (Entered: 07/02/2009).

O’Keefe also filed a Response in Opposition to the Motion for Summary Judgment Continue reading “keeping score – one settlement, one compromise, and one heel-digging response”

SLABBED Daily – July 5

Well, oops!  I stopped by to put up what I’ve written for tomorrow and found today’s SLABBED Daily still in drafts – an unfinished laundry list of things I’ve been thinking about.  We’re talking random.

Longsnapper Kevin Hausser’s release by the Saints has been getting a lot of ink.  The ink has little to do with football and a lot to do with movie tax credits – a subject that hasn’t come up since Jamie Perdigao filed his RICO lawsuit.

Speaking of football, we join Rick Cleveland of the Clarion Ledger in celebrating the life of Steve McNair and mourning the loss.

The first time these eyes saw Steve McNair was 21 years ago this fall. He was 16 years young, and he was, in a word, special.

McNair played that day in a state championship football game for Mount Olive, and he never came off the field for a rest. He kicked off, through the end zone, to start the game. He threw passes; he intercepted a pass; he threw for a touchdown; he ran for a touchdown; he made almost every tackle; he punted; and he returned kicks and punts. He won the game almost single-handedly…

I don’t pretend to know about the circumstances surrounding McNair’s death. But I did come to know and appreciate the man over the years, not only as a gallant athlete, but as a compassionate and humble man who gave his time and money to many causes…

So many memories…of a trip to the Gulf Coast and a distribution center for Hurricane Katrina victims in the fall of 2005. Continue reading “SLABBED Daily – July 5”