Court Voids Mandatory Arbitration Clause in Applied Underwriters Side Agreement

Applied Underwriters can’t force a policyholder to arbitrate a dispute because its mandatory arbitration provision was in a side agreement that was not filed with California regulators, a San Francisco judge ruled. The decision, which Applied Underwriters is appealing, comes as new rules adopted by the California Department of Insurance aiming to clarify requirements for filing policy documents are set to go into effect. The department is also currently reviewing an Applied Underwriters challenge to an administrative order finding an unfiled side agreement was unenforceable. At th...