Mo. Rev. Stat. § 375.1152 — MO Code / Chapter 375 / Section 375.1152
375.1152 Definitions.
Status: in_force

375.1152. Definitions. — For purposes of sections 375.570 to 375.750 and 375.1150 to 375.1246 , the following words and phrases shall mean:

(1) "Allocated loss adjustment expenses" , those fees, costs or expenses reasonably chargeable to the investigation, negotiation, settlement or defense of an individual claim or loss or to the protection and perfection of the subrogation rights of any insolvent insurer arising out of a policy of insurance issued by the insolvent insurer. "Allocated loss adjustment expenses" shall include all court costs, fees and expenses; fees for service of process; fees to attorneys; costs of undercover operative and detective services; fees of independent adjusters or attorneys for investigation or adjustment of claims beyond initial investigation; costs of employing experts for preparation of maps, photographs, diagrams, chemical or physical analysis or for advice, opinion or testimony concerning claims under investigation or in litigation; costs for legal transcripts or testimony taken at coroner's inquests, criminal or civil proceedings; costs for copies of any public records; costs of depositions and court-reported or -recorded statements. "Allocated loss adjustment expenses" shall not include the salaries of officials, administrators or other employees or normal overhead charges such as rent, postage, telephone, lighting, cleaning, heating or similar expenses;

(2) "Ancillary state" , any state other than a domiciliary state;

(3) "Creditor" , a person having any claim, whether matured or unmatured, liquidated or unliquidated, secured or unsecured, absolute, fixed or contingent;

(4) "Delinquency proceeding" , any proceeding instituted against an insurer for the purpose of liquidating, rehabilitating, reorganizing or conserving such insurer, and any summary proceeding under sections 375.1160 , 375.1162 and 375.1164 ;

(5) "Director" , the director of the department of commerce and insurance;

(6) "Doing business" includes any of the following acts, whether effected by mail or otherwise:

(a) The issuance or delivery of contracts of insurance to persons resident in this state;

(b) The solicitation of applications for such contracts, or other negotiations preliminary to the execution of such contracts;

(c) The collection of premiums, membership fees, assessments, or other consideration for such contracts;

(d) The transaction of matters subsequent to execution of such contracts and arising out of them; or

(e) Operating under a license or certificate of authority, as an insurer, issued by the department of commerce and insurance;

(7) "Domiciliary state" , the state in which an insurer is incorporated or organized or, in the case of an alien insurer, its state of entry;

(8) "Fair consideration" is given for property or obligation:

(a) When in exchange for such property or obligation, as a fair equivalent thereof, and in good faith, property is conveyed or services are rendered or an obligation is incurred or an antecedent debt is satisfied; or

(b) When such property or obligation is received in good faith to secure a present advance or antecedent debt in an amount not disproportionately small as compared to the value of the property or obligation obtained;

(9) "Foreign country" , any jurisdiction not in the United States;

(10) "Formal delinquency proceeding" , any liquidation or rehabilitation proceeding;

(11) "General assets" , all property, real, personal, or otherwise, not specifically mortgaged, pledged, deposited or otherwise encumbered for the security or benefit of specified persons or classes of persons. As to specifically encumbered property, "general assets" includes all such property or its proceeds in excess of the amount necessary to discharge the sum or sums secured thereby. Assets held in trust and on deposit for the security or benefit of all policyholders or all policyholders and creditors, in more than a single state, shall be treated as general assets;

(12) "Guaranty association" , the Missouri property and casualty insurance guaranty association created by sections 375.771 to 375.779 , as amended, the Missouri life and health insurance guaranty association created by sections 376.715 to 376.758 , as amended, and any other similar entity now or hereafter created by the laws of this state for the payment of claims of insolvent insurers. "Foreign guaranty association" means any similar entities now in existence or hereafter created by the laws of any other state;

(13) "Insolvency" or "insolvent" means:

(a) For an insurer issuing only assessable fire insurance policies:

a. The inability to pay an obligation within thirty days after it becomes payable; or

b. If an assessment be made within thirty days after such date, the inability to pay such obligation thirty days following the date specified in the first assessment notice issued after the date of loss;

(b) For any other insurer, that it is unable to pay its obligations when they are due, or when its admitted assets do not exceed its liabilities plus the greater of:

a. Any capital and surplus required by law for its organization; or

b. The total par or stated value of its authorized and issued capital stock;

(c) As to any insurer licensed to do business in this state as of August 28, 1991, which does not meet the standards established under paragraph (b) of this subdivision, the term "insolvency" or "insolvent" shall mean, for a period not to exceed three years from August 28, 1991, that it is unable to pay its obligations when they are due or that its admitted assets do not exceed its liabilities plus any required capital contribution ordered by the director under any other provisions of law;

(d) For purposes of this subdivision "liabilities" shall include but not be limited to reserves required by statute or by the department of commerce and insurance regulations or specific requirements imposed by the director upon a subject company at the time of admission or subsequent thereto;

(e) For purposes of this subdivision, an obligation is payable within ninety days of the resolution of any dispute regarding the obligation;

(14) "Insurer" , any person who has done, purports to do, is doing or is licensed to do insurance business as described in section 375.1150 , and is or has been subject to the authority of, or to liquidation, rehabilitation, reorganization, supervision, or conservation by, any insurance department of any state. For purposes of sections 375.1150 to 375.1246 , any other persons included under section 375.1150 shall be deemed to be insurers;

(15) "Netting agreement" :

(a) A contract or agreement (including terms and conditions incorporated by reference therein), including a master settlement agreement (which master settlement agreement, together with all schedules, confirmations, definitions and addenda thereto and transactions under any thereof, shall be treated as one netting agreement), that documents one or more transactions between the parties to the agreement for or involving one or more qualified financial contracts and that provides for the netting, liquidation, setoff, termination, acceleration, or close out under or in connection with one or more qualified financial contracts or present or future payment or delivery obligations or payment or delivery entitlements thereunder (including liquidation or close-out values relating to such obligations or entitlements) among the parties to the netting agreement;

(b) Any master agreement or bridge agreement for one or more master agreements described in paragraph (a) of this subdivision; or

(c) Any security agreement or arrangement or other credit enhancement or guarantee or reimbursement obligation related to any contract or agreement described in paragraph (a) or (b) of this subdivision; provided that any contract or agreement described in paragraph (a) or (b) of this subdivision relating to agreements or transactions that are not qualified financial contracts shall be deemed to be a netting agreement only with respect to those agreements or transactions that are qualified financial contracts;

(16) "Preferred claim" , any claim with respect to which the terms of sections 375.1150 to 375.1246 accord priority of payment from the general assets of the insurer;

(17) "Qualified financial contract" , any commodity contract, forward contract, repurchase agreement, securities contract, swap agreement, and any similar agreement that the director determines by rule to be a qualified financial contract for purposes of sections 375.1150 to 375.1246 . For purposes of this subdivision, the following terms shall mean:

(a) "Commodity contract" :

a. A contract for the purchase or sale of a commodity for future delivery on or subject to the rules of the board of trade or contract market under the Commodity Exchange Act, 7 U.S.C. Section 1, et seq., or a board of trade outside the United States;

b. An agreement that is subject to regulation under Section 19 of the Commodity Exchange Act, 7 U.S.C. Section 1, et seq., and that is commonly known to the commodities trade as a margin account, margin contract, leverage account, or leverage contract;

c. An agreement or transaction that is subject to regulation under Section 4c(b) of the Commodity Exchange Act, 7 U.S.C. Section 1, et seq., and that is commonly known to the commodities trade as a commodity option;

d. Any combination of the agreements or transactions referred to in this paragraph; or

e. Any option to enter into an agreement or transaction referred to in this paragraph;

(b) "Forward contract" , "repurchase agreement" , "securities contract" , and "swap agreement" , the same meaning as set forth in the Federal Deposit Insurance Act, 12 U.S.C. Section 1821(e)(8)(D), as amended;

(18) "Receiver" , a receiver, liquidator, administrative supervisor, rehabilitator or conservator, as the context requires;

(19) "Reciprocal state" , any state other than this state in which in substance and effect, provisions substantially similar to subsection 1 of section 375.1176 and sections 375.1235 , 375.1236 , 375.1240 , 375.1242 and 375.1244 have been enacted and are in force, and in which laws are in force requiring that the director of the state department of commerce and insurance or equivalent official be the receiver of a delinquent insurer, and in which some provision exists for the avoidance of fraudulent conveyances and preferential transfers;

(20) "Secured claim" , any claim secured by mortgage, trust deed, pledge, deposit as security, escrow, or otherwise, including a pledge of assets allocated to a separate account established pursuant to section 376.309 ; but not including special deposit claims or claims against general assets. The term also includes claims which have become liens upon specific deposit claims or claims against general assets. The term also includes claims which have become liens upon specific assets by reason of judicial process;

(21) "Special deposit claim" , any claim secured by a deposit made pursuant to statute for the security or benefit of a limited class or classes of persons, but not including any claim secured by general assets;

(22) "State" , any state, district, or territory of the United States and the Panama Canal Zone;

(23) "Transfer" shall include the sale and every other and different mode, direct or indirect, of disposing of or of parting with property or with an interest therein, or with the possession thereof, or of fixing a lien upon property or upon an interest therein, absolutely or conditionally, voluntarily, by or without judicial proceedings. The retention of a security title to property delivered to a debtor shall be deemed a transfer suffered by the debtor.

(L. 1991 H.B. 385, et al. § 51, A.L. 1992 H.B. 1574, A.L. 1993 H.B. 709, A.L. 2010 S.B. 583)