§ 26.1-51-05 — Submission to commissioner

North Dakota § 26.1-51-05

• Jurisdiction: North Dakota
• Title 26.1: Insurance
• Ch. 26.1-51: Self-Critical Insurance Analysis Privilege

Text

1. Upon request of the commissioner, an insurer must submit an insurance compliance
self-critical analysis audit document to the commissioner, or the commissioner's
designee, as a confidential document under the provisions of section 26.1-03-19.4
without waiving the privilege set forth in this chapter to which the insurer would
otherwise be entitled. However, the provisions of sections 26.1-03-19.3 and
26.1-03-19.4 permitting the commissioner to make confidential documents public and
accessible to the national association of insurance commissioners does not apply to
the insurance compliance self-critical analysis audit documents voluntarily submitted.
To the extent the commissioner has the authority to compel the disclosure of an
insurance compliance self-critical analysis audit document under other provisions of
applicable law, any report furnished to the commissioner may not be provided to any
other person or entity and must be accorded the same confidentiality and other
protections as provided above for voluntarily submitted documents. Any use of an
insurance compliance self-critical analysis audit document furnished as a result of a
request of the commissioner, whether under a claim of authority to compel disclosure
or not, is limited to determining whether any disclosed defects in an insurer's policies
or procedures or inappropriate treatment of customers has been remedied or that an
appropriate plan for their remedy is in place. The commissioner may not impose any
type of administrative fine or penalty as to any area addressed or matter covered in an
insurance compliance self-critical analysis audit document furnished at the
commissioner's request, except when there is clear and convincing evidence that the
insurer failed to undertake reasonable corrective action, eliminate inappropriate
treatment of customers, or failed to implement an appropriate plan to rectify any
noncompliance with state and federal statutes, rules, and orders.
2. An insurer's insurance compliance self-critical analysis audit document submitted to
the commissioner remains subject to all applicable statutory or common-law privileges,
including the work product doctrine, attorney-client privilege, or the subsequent
remedial measures exclusion. An insurance compliance self-critical analysis audit
document submitted to and in the possession of the commissioner remains the
property of the insurer and is not subject to any disclosure or production under section
44-04-18.
3. Disclosure of an insurance compliance self-critical analysis audit document to a
governmental agency, whether voluntary or pursuant to compulsion of law, does not
constitute a waiver of the privilege with respect to any other person or any other
governmental agency.