The Louisiana Supreme Court has ruled unanimously that new laws extending the deadline for policyholders to sue their insurers are constitutional due to the extraordinary circumstances resulting from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
In his opinion, Chief Justice Chet Traylor said the laws extending the filing period are "based on a significant and legitimate public purpose." Two days earlier, a lower state court upheld the constitutionality of the extension laws, after which the Louisiana attorney general asked the state Supreme Court for a definitive ruling even though he had won the case.
Allstate, among the companies protesting the extension, sought unsuccessfully to move the review to federal court. Insurers argued that any laws changing contract terms after the fact would not be helpful in general for the business climate.
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