Montana Governor Greg Gianforte approved three legal reform measures intended to provide consumer protections and disclosures and reduce frivolous lawsuits with the ultimate goal of lowering costs and increasing the availability of insurance.
“We applaud Gov. Gianforte and the Montana Legislature for approving these legal reform measures that will benefit and protect both consumers and businesses. Today, plaintiff lawyers often use a host of abusive tactics that turn the civil justice system into a commodities market supporting third parties’ interests rather than the victims’,” said Lyn Elliott, assistant vice president for state government relations for the American Property Casualty Insurance Association.
The legislation signed into includes:
- SB 165: Provides for insurance claims cooperation/affirmative defense for insurers, and the elimination of third-party common law bad faith in Montana.
- SB 236: Requires that time-limited settlement demand letters reasonably describe the claim, include relevant records, and allow 60 days for acceptance. Requires claimants provide reasonable records and information insurers need for timely, reasonable claims settlement.
- SB 269: Requires third party litigation financing entities to disclose their involvement to all parties and the court. It limits interest rates TPLFs can charge plaintiffs, caps the share of recovery TPLFs can take from plaintiffs and creates TPLF liability for court-ordered costs or penalties against the plaintiff.
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