A federal judge tossed out a lawsuit accusing MetLife and its executives of defrauding investors concerning accounting for its retirement and income solution line of business. In a Jan. 11 decision, Judge Sterling Johnson, Jr. of the Eastern District of New York found the claims “without merit.”

A bill to establish a best-interest standard was unanimously approved by the North Dakota House Industry, Business and Labor Committee following a morning public hearing. North Dakota is the latest state to pursue the best-interest model law put forth by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.

Two insurers are defendants in new lawsuits filed in California over whether proper notice was given in cases of lapse or termination of policies. The plaintiffs claim American National Insurance Company and Lincoln Benefit Life Company violated a 2013 California law that beefed up notification requirements.

Financial services trade associations raise substantial sums of political action committee funds, money that supports lobbying efforts on important issues. In light of last week’s mob attack on the Capitol and the tense political atmosphere, trade associations are reviewing donor policies.

Several more states are moving quickly to add a best-interest annuity sales standard to its regulation of insurance products. The latest states to pursue the best-interest model law put forth by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners are Michigan, Arkansas, Maine and Nebraska.

The nomination of Walsh was rumored for weeks, but comes two days after Democrats swept a pair of Senate races in Georgia. The wins by Rafael Warnock and Jon Ossoff over Republican incumbents Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue, respectively, gives Democrats control of the Senate.

Democrats sweeping both Senate races in Georgia frees up Biden to pick a more left-leaning candidate for labor secretary. For starters, he doesn’t have to worry so much about a difficult Senate confirmation fight. Secondly, pro-worker issues requiring legislation at least have a fighting chance of passing Congress.

The Congressional Review Act was a little-used device that Republicans used frequently early in the Trump presidency. It’s a model that a Democrat-controlled Senate could employ to kill two rules that invited public scorn.

Republicans are unified against Biden’s plans for health care, environmental protection and civil rights. But they might not be able to stop progress on those issues — not to mention tax increases and stronger financial regulation — should Democrats Rafael Warnock and Jon Ossoff emerge victorious today.

InsuranceNewsNet’s most-read Washington Wire stories from 2020 reflect the turbulent economic reality. Tax issues, Social Security and legislation to improve retirement savings dominated our news coverage. Here are the top five news stories from our nation’s capital.

It was a tough year to be a life insurance agent as COVID-19 swept across the country and led to business restrictions and stay-home advisories. On the other hand, the pandemic reminded Americans of the value of planning and life insurance. These five most-read stories reflect the year in life insurance.

The year in annuities included good news, bad news, regulation and legislation. Annuities sold great, sold poorly and, for a brief period, didn’t sell at all as insurers pulled products from the shelves during the raging COVID-19 pandemic. Check out these five most-read annuity stories from InsuranceNewsNet.

Transamerica announced this week that it will no longer sell variable annuities with benefit riders or fixed index annuities. The company is also exiting the standalone long-term care market, Aegon executives said in a planning session Thursday.

The Trump administration replacement rule has two main parts: a new prohibited transaction exemption allowing advisors to provide conflicted advice for commissions; and a reinstatement of the “five-part test” from 1975 to determine what constitutes investment advice.

No details are available on any changes to the Department of Labor investment advice rule. The next step is for the DOL to publish the rule. However, any rules published in the final 60 days of an administration, known as “midnight regulations,” can be rescinded by the incoming administration.

The National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ Executive Committee and Plenary adopted a pair of resolutions Thursday to wrap up work on key issues for life insurers. An effective date was established for AG 49A, and the nonforfeiture rate was dropped from 1% to 0.15%. Conflicts arose with both changes.

New anti-rebating language will permit insurers or producers to “offer or give non-cash gifts, items, or services, including meals to or charitable donations on behalf of a customer, in connection with the marketing, sale, purchase, or retention of contracts of insurance.”

Delaware is the latest state to tentatively commit to add a best-interest annuity sales standard to its regulation of insurance products. The state is accepting comment until Jan. 5 in an amendment to its suitability in annuity transactions regulation. If all goes well, the best-interest standard will be officially published on Aug. 1, 2021.

The U.S. single premium buy-out sales totaled $4.6 billion in the third quarter, down 41% from third quarter 2019 but double the $2.3 billion sold in the second quarter, according to the Secure Retirement Institute.

Alabama and Rhode Island are proposing updates to its “suitability in annuity transactions” regulation that most states adopted since the NAIC produced it in 2010. The states are the latest to propose “best-interest” standards for annuity sales.

Department of Labor officials alerted the White House Wednesday that it has completed work on a reworked rule to regulate investment advice to workers and retirees. No details are available on any changes to the rule, which could be rescinded by the incoming Biden administration.

In a pair of lawsuits, both appealed to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, insurers prevailed in lower-court rulings over cost-of-insurance increases. The cases are important because they are among the few COI cases that insurers have won a favorable verdict.

Panelists agreed that consolidation through mergers and acquisitions will pick up as carriers and others along the distribution chain seek efficiencies through scale. The life and annuity business is likely to follow the path of the property & casualty industry in terms of M&A activity, panelists agreed.

Although President-elect Joe Biden will exert considerable influence over the Securities and Exchange Commission, the agency’s Regulation Best Interest is probably not going anywhere. At least not right away, say industry officials.

The Department of Labor has one week to publish its investment advice rule to avoid a quick hook by the incoming Joe Biden administration. Any rules published in the final 60 days of an administration, known as “midnight regulations,” can be rescinded by the incoming administration.

The plan is to sell 19.9% of the life/retirement business, either through an initial public offering, commonly called an IPO, or a private sale. It “will not consider” selling more than that, said Zaffino, who will become CEO on March 1, 2021, and remain president of AIG.

Lincoln Financial expects “to bottom out” during the fourth quarter, CEO Dennis Glass said of life and annuity sales, and the company is preparing to roar back in 2021 with eight new products lined up. Glass spoke today during a conference call with analysts to review third-quarter earnings.

Prudential Financial is discontinuing all sales of variable annuities with guaranteed living benefits, eliminating its Highest Daily Income and Prudential Defined Income annuity products. The move is needed as the insurer recalibrates amid economic uncertainty and ultra-low interest rates, CEO Charlie Lowry said.

Athene is in an deal-making mode, President Bill Wheeler said, but will be looking elsewhere. American Equity rejected a $3 billion takeover bid put forth earlier this month by MassMutual and Athene, and is instead going into business with Brookfield Asset Management.

Jackson National Life Insurance Co. became the latest insurer today to announce layoffs due to the pandemic business slowdown. The company said it is laying off about 150 people, a company spokesman confirmed in an emailed statement.

An industry leader in fixed index annuities, American Equity held a conference call Friday to discuss third-quarter earnings. Gross sales of $574 million were down 56% over the third quarter 2019.

Analysts are eager to see the bottom lines as many insurers are starting to show cracks in the economic foundation — in the form of significant employee layoffs. Globe Life was one of the first life insurance companies to report third-quarter data today.

FraudShare will soon cover companies representing 75% of the in-force U.S. life insurance market, 70% of deferred annuity assets and 30% of the U.S. defined contribution plans market.

Like many aspects of the insurance industry, mergers-and-acquisitions activity is not at all where analysts expected coming into 2020 — thank COVID-19 for that. But M&A will return robustly, analysts predict. In fact, it will help shape how the industry recovers from the pandemic and reinvents itself.

The plaintiffs claim they were misled about the costs of an IUL policy and how it works. The case has broad implications for the industry and the controversial Actuarial Guideline 49 put forth by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, an industry attorney said.

Historically, annuities have lived in the insurance world, with financial advisors largely uninterested. Several trends are combining to break down that wall, however, many advisors remain resistant. They shouldn’t be, said David Lau, founder and CEO of DPL Financial Partners.

The Department of Labor could publish a final version of its investment advice rule any day now — but the 10-year regulation saga is far from over. Even is President Donald Trump wins a second term, DOL rule opponents, of which there are many, still have avenues to kill the regulation. Here are two.

Citing COVID-19 impacts, insurers have pleaded with regulators to reduce the 1% nonforfeiture rate. The 10-year Treasury rate fell well below 1% amid the virus outbreak in March and has not recovered, making it very hard for insurers to make good on product guarantees.

Financial advisor Chris Lund is getting more referrals than ever, despite abandoning his public office months ago amid the coronavirus…

It is often strategy that determines whether advisors are successful or whether they underperform, said Chip Roame, managing partner of Tiburon Strategic Advisors. In particular 11 things that an advisor needs to figure out in order to be a success.

Many annuity manufacturers adopted product designs that essentially share the downside risk with the consumer. That gave rise to the registered index-linked annuities, which continue to post impressive sales numbers. Through the first half of 2020, RILA sаles were $9.4 billion, up 22% from the first hаlf of 2019.

Although partisan rule reversals are common in the federal government, the SEC generally observes a different sense of decorum, one leading expert says. However, a Biden administration might have other tools at its disposal to toughen up RegBI.

The problem for the DOL is one of time. There might not be enough of it to do a major rewrite, and all of the analysis and legal testing that goes along with that. Ideally, the agency would need to publish its final rule by Nov. 1 at the latest, a former DOL official said Wednesday.