(A) The Statement of Actuarial Opinion must be provided with the Annual Statement in accordance with the appropriate NAIC Property and Casualty Annual Statement Instructions and must be treated as a public document.

(B)(1) Documents, materials, or other information in the possession or control of the department that are considered an Actuarial Report, workpapers, or Actuarial Opinion Summary provided in support of the opinion, and any other material provided by the company to the director or his designee in connection with the Actuarial Report, workpapers, or Actuarial Opinion Summary, are confidential by law and privileged, are exempt from disclosure under applicable law, are not subject to subpoena, and are not subject to discovery or admissible in evidence in any private civil action.

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Terms Used In South Carolina Code 38-9-230

  • 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.
  • insurance: includes annuities. 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.

(2) This provision may not be construed to limit the director or his designee’s authority to release the documents to the Actuarial Board for Counseling and Discipline so long as the material is required for the purpose of professional disciplinary proceedings and that the Actuarial Board for Counseling and Discipline establishes procedures satisfactory to the director or his designee for preserving the confidentiality of the documents, nor may this section be construed to limit the director or his designee’s authority to use the documents, materials, or other information in furtherance of a regulatory or legal action brought as part of the director or his designee’s official duties.

(C) Neither the director nor a person who received documents, materials, or other information while acting under the authority of the director is permitted or required to testify in a private civil action concerning confidential documents, materials, or information subject to subsection (B).

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

(1) share documents, materials, or other information, including the confidential and privileged documents, materials, or information subject to subsection (B) with other state, federal, and international regulatory agencies, with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners and its affiliates and subsidiaries, and with state, federal, and international law enforcement authorities, provided that the recipient agrees to maintain the confidentiality and privileged status of the document, material, or other information and has the legal authority to maintain confidentiality;

(2) receive documents, materials, or information, including otherwise confidential and privileged documents, materials, or information, from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners and its affiliates and subsidiaries, and from regulatory and law enforcement officials of other foreign or domestic jurisdictions, and shall maintain as confidential or privileged any document, material, or information received with notice or the understanding that it is confidential or privileged under the laws of the jurisdiction that is the source of the document, material, or information; and

(3) enter into agreements governing sharing and use of information consistent with subsections (B), (C), and (D).

(E) A waiver of an applicable privilege or a claim of confidentiality in the documents, materials, or information shall not occur as a result of disclosure to the director under this section or as a result of sharing as authorized in subsection (D).