(A) Documents, materials, or other information including the CGAD in the possession or control of the Department of Insurance that are obtained by, created by, or disclosed to the director or any other person under this article, are recognized by this State as being proprietary and containing trade secrets. All such documents, materials, or other information are confidential by law and privileged, are not subject to disclosure under the South Carolina Freedom of Information Act, § 30-4-10, et seq. and are not subject to subpoena, to discovery or admissible into evidence in a private civil action. However, the director is authorized to use the documents, materials, or other information in furtherance of regulatory or legal action brought as a part of the director’s official duties. The director shall not otherwise make the documents, materials, or other information public without the prior written consent of the insurer. Nothing in this section may be construed to require written consent of the insurer before the director may share or receive confidential documents, materials, or other CGAD-related information to assist in the performance of the director’s duties.

(B) Neither the director nor any person who received documents, materials, or other CGAD-related information, through examination or otherwise, while acting under the authority of the director, or with whom such documents, materials, or other information are shared may be permitted or required to testify in a private civil action covering any confidential documents, materials, or information submitted pursuant to this article.

Terms Used In South Carolina Code 38-13-1050

  • Department: means the Department of Insurance of South Carolina. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Director: means the person who is appointed by the Governor upon the advice and consent of the Senate and who is responsible for the operation and management of the department. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Discovery: Lawyers' examination, before trial, of facts and documents in possession of the opponents to help the lawyers prepare for trial.
  • Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
  • Freedom of Information Act: A federal law that mandates that all the records created and kept by federal agencies in the executive branch of government must be open for public inspection and copying. The only exceptions are those records that fall into one of nine exempted categories listed in the statute. Source: OCC
  • insurance: includes annuities. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Insurer: includes a corporation, fraternal organization, burial association, other association, partnership, society, order, individual, or aggregation of individuals engaging or proposing or attempting to engage as principals in any kind of insurance or surety business, including the exchanging of reciprocal or interinsurance contracts between individuals, partnerships, and corporations. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • Person: means a corporation, agency, partnership, association, voluntary organization, individual, or another entity, organization, or aggregation of individuals. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
  • Subpoena: A command to a witness to appear and give testimony.
  • Testify: Answer questions in court.

(C) In order to assist in the performance of the director’s regulatory duties the director may:

(1) upon request, share documents, materials, or other CGAD-related information including the confidential and privileged documents, materials, or information, including proprietary and trade secret documents and materials with other state, federal, and international financial regulatory agencies including members of any supervisory college as defined in § 38-21-285 with the NAIC and with third-party consultants pursuant to § 38-13-1060, provided that the recipient agrees in writing to maintain the confidentiality and privileged status of the CGAD-related documents, material, or other information and has certified in writing the legal authority to maintain confidentiality; and

(2) receive documents, materials, or other CGAD-related information, including otherwise confidential and privileged documents, materials, or information, including proprietary and trade secret information or documents, from regulatory officials of other state, federal, and international financial regulatory agencies, including members of any supervisory college as defined in § 38-21-285 and from the NAIC, and shall maintain as confidential or privileged any documents, materials, or information received with notice of the understanding that it is confidential or privileged under the laws of the jurisdiction that is the source of the documents, materials, or information.

(D) The sharing of information and documents by the director pursuant to the provisions of this article do not constitute a delegation of regulatory authority or rulemaking and the director is solely responsible for the administration, execution, and enforcement of the provisions of this article.

(E) No waiver of any applicable privilege or claim of confidentiality in the documents, proprietary and trade secret materials, or other CGAD-related information may occur as a result of disclosure of the CGAD-related information or documents to the director under this section or as a result of sharing as authorized pursuant to this section.

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