Introduction of Bill to Amend the Comprehensive Insurance Disclosure Act

January 21, 2022

By William Parra

On Jan. 18, 2022, a bill to amend the recently enacted Comprehensive Insurance Disclosure Act (“CIDA”) was introduced in the NYS Senate. The proposed changes in Bill S07882 are virtually identical to those Governor Hochul proposed, which were outlined in our Jan. 6th alert. As you may recall, the Governor qualified her signing of the bill by issuing a “signing memo” stating that she did so after coming to an agreement with the Legislature to “properly tailor” the CIDA for its intended purpose, i.e., ensuring litigants were adequately notified of insurance coverage limits.

The most significant proposed changes to the CIDA include:

  • Eliminating its retroactive effect, limiting its application to actions filed after 12.31.21;
  • Eliminating the requirement to disclose policy applications;
  • Increasing the compliance deadline in new actions from 60 to 90 days;
  • Eliminating the obligation to disclose policies and suit/attorney/adjuster information in other actions that may erode the policy limits (disclosure of your adjuster’s information in your action would be limited to their name and email address);
  • The “ongoing obligation” to ensure accuracy of disclosures would be modified to “must make reasonable efforts” to ensure the information remains accurate and complete (after initial disclosure) at the Note of Issue filing, before any mediation or trial, and for 60 days after settlement, final judgment or appeal; and
  • Eliminating the requirement to disclose attorneys and attorneys’ fees that erode policy limits and the CIDA’s application to MVA PIP lawsuits.

It is our understanding that passage of the Bill could take at least several weeks. Therefore, while it appears possible that the proposed amendments will be enacted into law by or very close to the CIDA’s present Mar. 1st compliance deadline for existing cases, we must stress that its significant requirements (also outlined in our Jan. 6th alert) remain the law until that time.

We will continue to monitor and keep you updated as to the Bill’s progress.