Insurer wants to seal storm claims manual
Times-Picayune (New Orleans)
Consumer groups from California and Washington, D.C., have asked U.S. District Court in New Orleans to keep open to the public key Allstate Insurance Co. documents from the first federal insurance trial from Hurricane Katrina to be completed in Louisiana.
The California insurance group the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, and the Washington public interest law firm Public Justice filed a motion in court last week opposing Allstate‘s request to seal the key documents from Weiss v. Allstate. In April, jurors awarded Dr. Robert Weiss of Slidell a $2.8 million judgment against Allstate. Weiss later settled the case on confidential terms after the company in post-trial motions had asked U.S. District Judge Sarah Vance to order a new trial or reduce the jury’s “irrational verdict.”
The documents in question include Allstate‘s Katrina claims-handling manual and other instructions to adjusters. The involvement of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights and Public Justice highlight the national interest in the insurance litigation unfolding in Louisiana.
In court filings, the groups say that there is a national public interest in keeping the records open. “They provide insight into Allstate‘s decision-making process whereby it evaluated claims entered by homeowners in Katrina’s wake. Blocking public access to these documents would directly impede FTCR’s mission of educating the public about Allstate‘s practices — in particular, its handling of claims for damage to policyholders’ homes due to natural disasters.”
Allstate has countered that the groups have no standing to get involved in this Louisiana case, and that the consumer groups’ interests are adequately represented by the Weiss attorneys.
“While (FTCR) has alleged a purported interest in gathering information about the insurance industry in order to further an apparent political agenda, it has not illustrated any present case or controversy that shares common questions of law or fact with the instant case,” Allstate‘s opposition reads. “Indeed, to date, FTCR has never concerned itself with the rights of the citizens of Louisiana, as all of its referenced so-called consumer advocacy has involved California citizens.”
Plaintiffs attorneys say that sealing records in insurance cases creates unnecessary obstacles for anyone trying to bring suit or research insurance industry business practices because it bogs them down with extra legal requests to produce documents that would otherwise be in the public realm.
Vance and Magistrate Judge Alma Chasez are considering the record sealing issues and questions of whether the consumer groups can intervene.
