On May 26, 2022, the Supreme Court of the State of Delaware issued its decision in Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. and Berkshire Hathaway Life Insurance Company of Nebraska v. Estate of Phyllis M. Malkin (19-14689, 17-cv-23136, 172,...more
As many of you may know, Cozen O’Connor was victorious last year in obtaining a ruling by the New Jersey Supreme Court in Sun Life Assurance Company v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., 238 N.J. 157 (2019) (Bergman) that...more
We previously reported on the New Jersey Supreme Court’s ruling on the validity of stranger-originated life insurance (STOLI) policies in the June 2019 issue of Expect Focus — Life, Annuity, and Retirement Solutions....more
The New Jersey Supreme Court recently condemned stranger-originated life insurance (“STOLI”) transactions as void ab initio human life wagers in a case that the life insurance and life settlement industries watched closely....more
The New Jersey Supreme Court recently held stranger-originated life insurance (STOLI) policies void as against public policy. In Sun Life Assurance Co. of Canada v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., a $5 million policy was taken out on...more
On June 4, 2019, in a case captioned Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada v. Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., the Supreme Court of New Jersey answered two questions certified to it by the United States Court of Appeals for the Third...more
The Florida Supreme Court recently held that life insurance policies procured by investors through a STOLI scheme did not violate Florida’s insurable interest statute and could not be challenged after the two-year...more
On September 22, the Florida Supreme Court in Wells Fargo Bank NA v. Pruco Life Insurance Co., No. SC15-382 (Fla. Sept. 22, 2016) denied Pruco Life Insurance Company’s challenge to the validity of an insurance policy...more
The U.S. Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals certified 2 questions under Florida law to the Florida Supreme Court relating to 3 STOLI life insurance policies. The Florida Supreme Court rephrased (and conflated) the 2 questions...more
On September 22, 2016, the Florida Supreme Court issued an eagerly-awaited opinion in Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. v. Pruco Life Insurance Co. The Court held that Florida's two-year contestability statute applies to bar an...more
In recent years, federal district courts addressing claims and defenses with respect to stranger-originated life insurance (STOLI) schemes have reached a variety of results. Accordingly, federal appellate courts have...more