Arizona Laws 20-676. Stay of proceedings
A. All proceedings in which the insolvent insurer or the insolvent insurer’s insured is a party in any court of this state shall be stayed for six months from the date the insolvency is determined or an ancillary proceeding is instituted in this state, whichever is later, to permit proper defense by the fund of all pending causes of action as to any covered claim. At the request of any party and on a showing of good cause, the court may shorten or lengthen the stay prescribed in this section. This subsection does not apply to proceedings in which the insolvent insurer is a party to a proceeding before the industrial commission regarding an employee’s entitlement to benefits under Title 23, Chapter 6, except that, on a showing of good cause, the industrial commission shall grant up to a ninety-day continuance of any scheduled hearing to allow the fund to assume the defense and investigate the claim.
Terms Used In Arizona Laws 20-676
- Action: includes any matter or proceeding in a court, civil or criminal. See Arizona Laws 1-215
- Continuance: Putting off of a hearing ot trial until a later time.
- Covered claim: means an unpaid claim, including one for unearned premium, which arises out of and is within the coverage of an insurance policy to which this article applies issued by an insurer, if such insurer becomes an insolvent insurer after August 27, 1977 and the claimant or insured is a resident of this state at the time of the insured event or the property from which the claim arises is permanently located in this state. See Arizona Laws 20-661
- Entitlement: A Federal program or provision of law that requires payments to any person or unit of government that meets the eligibility criteria established by law. Entitlements constitute a binding obligation on the part of the Federal Government, and eligible recipients have legal recourse if the obligation is not fulfilled. Social Security and veterans' compensation and pensions are examples of entitlement programs.
- Fund: means the Arizona property and casualty insurance guaranty fund. See Arizona Laws 20-661
- Insolvent insurer: means an insurer that is licensed to transact insurance in this state either at the time the policy was issued or when the insured event occurred and against whom an order of liquidation with a finding of insolvency has been entered after September 19, 2007 by a court of competent jurisdiction in the insurer's state of domicile or by this state pursuant to section 20-623, and the order of liquidation has not been stayed or been the subject of a writ of supersedeas or other comparable order. See Arizona Laws 20-661
- Verdict: The decision of a petit jury or a judge.
B. On application of the fund, either on the fund’s own behalf or on the insured’s behalf, the court may set aside any judgment, order, decision, verdict, finding or award arising from the default of the insolvent insurer or the insurer’s failure to defend the insured and the fund shall be allowed to defend the claim on the merits.
C. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, a federal home loan bank may not be stayed, enjoined or prohibited from exercising or enforcing any right or cause of action against collateral pledged by an insurer member under any federal home loan bank security agreement or any pledge, security, collateral or guarantee agreement or other similar arrangement or credit enhancement relating to a security agreement to which that federal home loan bank is a party.