United States Fourth Circuit

In case involving a terminally ill woman who sold her life insurance policy at a deep discount to for funds needed for the last months of her life, judgment for intervenor defendant upholding the Virginia Viatical Settlements Act (VVSA) is affirmed where the McCarran-Ferguson Act saves the VVSA from preemption of the Commerce Clause and renders it constitutional, as: 1) the sale of life insurance policies by terminally ill patients directly and substantially affects the business of insurance; and 2) the VVSA was enacted to regulate such business.

Appellate Information

• Argued 11/30/2006
• Decided 04/30/2007
• Published 04/30/2007

Judges

• Before NIEMEYER, MICHAEL, and TRAXLER, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Fourth Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellees:
  
• ARGUED:  Douglas Michael Palais, Leclair Ryan, P.C., Richmond, Virginia, for Appellant/Cross-Appellee.  Maureen Riley Matsen, Office of the Attorney General of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia;  Robert A. Dybing, Thompson & McMullan, Richmond, Virginia, for Appellees/Cross-Appellants.   ON BRIEF:  Cameron S. Matheson, Leclair Ryan, P.C., Richmond, Virginia;  Lee E. Goodman, Robert P. Howard, Leclair Ryan, P.C., Washington, D.C., for Appellant/Cross-Appellee.  Faisal S. Qureshi, Thompson & McMullan, Richmond, Virginia;  Ronald N. Regnery, Office of the Attorney General of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia;  Philip R. de Haas, William H. Chambliss, Pamela B. Beckner, Scott A. White, State Corporation Commission of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia, for Appellees/Cross-Appellants.   Rex A. Staples, Stephen W. Hall, Lesley M. Walker, North American Securities Administrators Association, Inc., Washington, D.C., for North American Securities Administrators Association, Incorporated, Amicus Supporting Appellees/Cross-Appellants.  Elizabeth Mason Horsley, Williams Mullen, P.C., Richmond, Virginia, for National Association of Insurance Commissioners, Amicus Supporting Appellees/Cross-Appellants.