California Judge Tosses State Farm Lawsuit On Data.(Brief Article)

National Underwriter Property & Casualty-Risk & Benefits Management, March, 2000 by MAURICE, ALEX

A California Superior Court judge has "SLAPPed" down a State Farm lawsuit that sought to prevent public disclosure of data that revealed agent locations and written policies in state ZIP code areas. San Francisco Superior Court Judge Ronald Quidachay last week dismissed State Farm's lawsuit on the grounds that it violated the state law against SLAPP (Strategic Litigation Against Public Participation) lawsuits.

The State Farm lawsuit had challenged the California insurance department's release of the ZIP code data to consumer advocate Birny Birnbaum, a consultant for the Center for Economic Justice in Austin, Texas. Mr. Birnbaum, who is also a consumer representative for the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, was named as a co-defendant in...

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