Ass'n of Banks in Insurance v. Duryee

270 F.3d 397
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
DecidedNovember 1, 2001
DocketNo. 99-3917
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 270 F.3d 397 (Ass'n of Banks in Insurance v. Duryee) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Ass'n of Banks in Insurance v. Duryee, 270 F.3d 397 (6th Cir. 2001).

Opinion

OPINION

DAUGHTREY, Circuit Judge.

This action involves the right of a national bank, under § 13 of the Federal Reserve Act, 12 U.S.C. § 92, to act as an insurance agent in towns with a population [401]*401of 5,000 or less. The plaintiffs, a national bank and several organizations whose memberships include national banks, filed suit against the Ohio Superintendent of Insurance seeking: (1) a declaratory judgment that certain Ohio licensing provisions as applied to national banks are preempted by 12 U.S.C. § 92; and (2) a permanent injunction preventing enforcement of these provisions against national banks to the extent that they are preempted. Specifically at issue is the viability of Ohio’s “principal purpose test,” as well as various statutory licensing requirements. Faced with cross-motions for summary judgment, the district court granted summary judgment in favor of the plaintiffs, providing them with the requested declaratory and injunctive relief.

Subsequent to the filing of the action, a number of insurance trade organizations intervened as defendants. They now appeal the district court’s decision. However, because the state superintendent of insurance, the original party-defendant, has not appealed, apparently acquiescing in the order of non-enforcement of the state statutes in question, the plaintiffs challenge the standing of the intervenors before this court. For the reasons set out below, we conclude that the intervenors do indeed have standing to bring this appeal but, nevertheless, we affirm the judgment of the district court on the merits. Because of legislation enacted after judgment was entered, however, the case must be remanded for further proceedings.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

This challenge to the Ohio insurance licensing laws began when the Association of Banks in Insurance, Inc., the American Bankers Association Insurance Association, the Ohio Bankers Association, and the Huntington National Bank filed suit against Harold T. Duryee in his official capacity as head of the Ohio Department of Insurance.1 Shortly thereafter, the Independent Insurance Agents of Ohio, Inc., the Ohio Association of Life Underwriters, the Ohio Association of Professional Insurance Agents, Inc., the Ohio Land Title Association, the Independent Insurance Agents of America, Inc., the National Association of Life Underwriters, and the National Association of Professional Insurance Agents, Inc., intervened as defendants in the suit. The intervenor-defen-dants are all insurance trade associations that represent independent insurance agents. They joined suit to protect their constituents’ economic interests, which they claimed would be threatened if national banks were allowed to sell insurance without having to comply fully with Ohio’s insurance laws.

Plaintiffs sued for declaratory and in-junctive relief under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and 28 U.S.C. § 2201. They sought a ruling that 12 U.S.C. § 922 preempts certain [402]*402Ohio insurance licensing provisions under the Supremacy Clause of the United States Constitution, U.S. Const. Art VI, cl. 2. They also sought an injunction to prevent Duryee from enforcing these provisions against national banks to the extent that the provisions were preempted by federal law. Specifically, the plaintiffs argued that § 92 preempts both Ohio’s principal purpose test as codified in O.R.C. §§ 3905.02(B), 3905.03(A)(5), 3905.04, 3905.18(C) and (D), and the provisions of O.R.C. §§ 3905.02(E)(1) and (2), 3905.18(G)(1) and (2), and 3905.18(C), to the extent that they condition a national bank’s exercise of its § 92 powers on the bank’s qualifying to do business in Ohio under the general corporation law, remaining in good standing with the Ohio secretary of state, and organizing for the purpose of acting as an insurance agent.3

In conjunction with the plaintiffs’ motion for summary judgment, the United States Office of the Comptroller of the Currency submitted a brief as amicus cwriae, urging the district court to find that the challenged Ohio provisions were preempted because they prevent or impair the ability of national banks to exercise their § 92 powers to sell insurance. Defendant Du-ryee and the intervenor-defendants filed cross-motions for summary judgment. All of the parties agreed that the issues presented in this case were primarily questions of law and that there were no genuine issues of material fact.

Subsequently, the district court entered summary judgment for the plaintiffs, granting a declaratory judgment and permanently enjoining the superintendent from enforcing the challenged Ohio provisions against national banks located and doing business in towns with 5,000 or fewer inhabitants. The intervenor-defendants now appeal the district court’s decision.

DISCUSSION

I. Standing of Intervenors

As a preliminary matter the plaintiffs argue that the intervenor-defendants lack standing to appeal, on the ground that they do not claim to have been injured by the district court’s decision. This question is complicated by the fact that, having declined to appeal the judgment of the district court, the Ohio Superintendent of Insurance apparently does not intend to enforce the provisions of the statute at issue here and instead, we assume, will invoke the alternate provisions of O.R.C. § 1703.03.1. See infra.

Permission to intervene in a district court action does not automatically confer standing to appeal. See Diamond v. Charles, 476 U.S. 54, 106 S.Ct. 1697, 90 L.Ed.2d 48 (1986). When considering whether the intervenor-defendants have standing to appeal, our focus is on the [403]*403injury caused by the judgment rather than the injury caused by the underlying facts. See 15A Charles A. Wright, Arthur R. Miller & Edward H. Cooper, Federal Practice and Procedure: § 3902 (2d ed.1992). “Although the determination of an injury may not always be simple, standing to appeal is recognized if the appellant can show an adverse effect of the judgment, and denied if no adverse effect can be shown.” Id.

In this case, regardless of the decision of the Ohio Superintendent of Insurance not to appeal in his own name, the judgment of the district court has the effect of easing restrictions on the entry of national banks into the Ohio insurance arena. Consequently, as potential competitors of those banks, the intervenor-defendants face the threat of economic injury should the Ohio statutory provisions not be enforced. Such threatened injury is sufficient to confer appellate standing on the intervenor-defendants and allows them to challenge the merits of the district court’s decision. See, e.g., Kelley v. Selin, 42 F.3d 1501, 1508 (6th Cir.1995).

II. Applicable Federal Statutes

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270 F.3d 397, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/assn-of-banks-in-insurance-v-duryee-ca6-2001.