In This Issue:

- Title Insurers Gain Big Antitrust Vict ory in the Third Circuit by James M. Burns -

On June 14, the title insurance industry received good news from the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, as the court affirmed the dismissal of two high-profile antitrust cases that have been in litigation for several years – In re: New Jersey Title Insurance Litigation and McCray v. Fidelity National Title Insurance Company. In separate opinions that, in most respects, tracked each other in terms of analysis, the appellate court affirmed lower court rulings that the Filed Rate Doctrine barred plaintiffs from asserting claims that they had overpaid for title insurance...

- McCarran Repeal Legislation Introduced by Congressman John Conyers by James M. Burns -

On May 18, Representative John Conyers (D) of Michigan introduced the “Health Insurance Industry Antitrust Enforcement Act of 2012,” a bill that would repeal the McCarran-Ferguson Act’s antitrust exemption for health and medical malpractice insurers...

- Legislation Permitting Physicians to Negotiate Collectively with Insurers on Fees Introduced in New York by James M. Burns

In early June, legislation was introduced in the New York Senate (S7615) that would permit independent health care providers in some New York counties to negotiate collectively with insurers over the terms and conditions (including fees) of their provider contracts. Absent such a statute, joint negotiation of fees by independent providers would constitute unlawful collective action that violates Section 1 of the Sherman Act.