2023 Delaware Code
Title 18 - Insurance Code
Chapter 59. REHABILITATION AND LIQUIDATION
Subchapter I. General Provisions
§ 5901. Definitions [For application of this section, see 79 Del. Laws, c. 207, § 3].

Universal Citation:
18 DE Code § 5901 (2023)
Learn more This media-neutral citation is based on the American Association of Law Libraries Universal Citation Guide and is not necessarily the official citation.
§ 5901. Definitions [For application of this section, see 79 Del. Laws, c. 207, § 3].

For the purpose of this chapter:

(1) “Impairment” or “insolvency.” —

The capital of a stock insurer or the surplus of a mutual or reciprocal insurer shall be deemed to be impaired, and the insurer shall be deemed to be insolvent, when such insurer is not possessed of assets at least equal to all liabilities and required reserves together with its total issued and outstanding capital stock, if a stock insurer, or the minimum surplus if a mutual or reciprocal insurer, required by this title to be maintained for the kind or kinds of insurance it is then authorized to transact.

(2) “Insurer” means any person, firm, corporation, association or aggregation of persons doing an insurance business and subject to the insurance supervisory authority of or to liquidation, rehabilitation, reorganization or conservation by the Commissioner or the equivalent insurance supervisory official of another state.

(3) “Delinquency proceeding” means any proceeding commenced against an insurer pursuant to this chapter for the purpose of liquidating, rehabilitating, reorganizing or conserving such insurer.

(4) “State” means any state of the United States and also the District of Columbia and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.

(5) “Foreign country” means territory not in any state.

(6) “Domiciliary state” means the state in which an insurer is incorporated or organized or, in the case of an insurer incorporated or organized in a foreign country, the state in which such insurer, having become authorized to do business in such state, has at the commencement of delinquency proceedings the largest amount of its assets held in trust and assets held on deposit for the benefit of its policyholders or policyholders and creditors in the United States, and any such insurer is deemed to be domiciled in such state.

(7) “Ancillary state” means any state other than a domiciliary state.

(8) “Reciprocal state” means any state other than this State in which in substance and effect the provisions of the Uniform Insurers Liquidation Act, as defined in § 5920 of this title, are in force, including the provisions requiring that the Commissioner of Insurance or equivalent insurance supervisory official be the receiver of a delinquent insurer.

(9) “General assets” means all property, real, personal or otherwise, not specifically mortgaged, pledged, deposited or otherwise encumbered for the security or benefit of specified persons or a limited class or classes of persons, and as to such specifically encumbered property, the term 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 assets held on deposit for the security or benefit of all policyholders or all policyholders and creditors in the United States shall be deemed general assets.

(10) “Preferred claim” means any claim with respect to which the law of the state or of the United States accords priority of payments from the general assets of the insurer.

(11) “Special deposit claim” means 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 general assets.

(12) “Secured claim” means any claim secured by mortgage, trust deed, pledge, deposit as security, escrow or otherwise but not including special deposit claim or claims against general assets. The term also includes claims which more than 4 months prior to the commencement of delinquency proceedings in the state of the insurer's domicile have become liens upon specific assets by reason of judicial process.

(13) “Receiver” means receiver, liquidator, rehabilitator or conservator as the context may require.

(14) “Affiliate” shall have the same meaning as set forth in § 5001 of this title.

(15) “Commodity contract” means any of the following:

a. A contract for the purchase or sale of a commodity for future delivery on, or subject to the rules of, a board of trade designated as a contract market by the commodity futures trading commission under the federal Commodity Exchange Act, 7 U.S.C. § 1 et seq., or a board of trade outside the United States.

b. An agreement that is subject to regulation under § 23 of the federal Commodity Exchange Act [7 U.S.C. § 26] 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 § 6c(b) of the federal Commodity Exchange Act [7 U.S.C. § 13a-1] 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.

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

(16) “Creditor” or “claimant” is a person having any claim against an insurer, whether the claim is matured or not, liquidated or unliquidated, secured or unsecured, absolute, fixed or contingent.

(17) “Formal delinquency proceeding” means any conservation, rehabilitation or liquidation proceeding; provided, however, that the term “formal delinquency proceeding” shall not include a supervision under § 5942 of this title.

(18) “Forward contract” shall have the meaning set forth in the Federal Deposit Insurance Act, 12 U.S.C. § 1821(e)(8)(D), as amended from time to time.

(19) “Netting agreement” means:

a. A contract or agreement (including terms and conditions incorporated by reference therein), including a master agreement (which master agreement, together with all schedules, confirmations, definitions and addenda thereto and transactions under any thereof, shall be treated as 1 netting agreement), that documents one or more transactions between the parties to the agreement for or involving 1 or more qualified financial contracts and that provides for the netting, liquidation, setoff, termination, acceleration or close out under or in connection with 1 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 1 or more master agreements described in paragraph (19)a. of this section; 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 (19)a. or b. of this section; provided that any contract or agreement described in paragraph (19)a. or b. of this section 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.

(20) “Qualified financial contract” means any commodity contract, forward contract, repurchase agreement, securities contract, swap agreement and any similar agreement that the commissioner determines by regulation, rule or order to be a qualified financial contract for the purposes of this chapter.

(21) “Repurchase agreement” shall have the meaning set forth in the Federal Deposit Insurance Act, 12 U.S.C. § 1821(e)(8)(D), as amended from time to time. The term repurchase agreement also applies to a reverse repurchase agreement.

(22) “Securities contract” shall have the meaning set forth in the Federal Deposit Insurance Act, 12 U.S.C. § 1821(e)(8)(D), as amended from time to time.

(23) “Swap agreement” shall have the meaning set forth in the Federal Deposit Insurance Act, 12 U.S.C. § 1821(e)(8)(D), as amended from time to time.

(24) “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, including a setoff, or with the possession thereof or of fixing a lien upon property or upon an interest therein, absolutely or conditionally, voluntarily or involuntarily, by or without judicial proceedings. The retention of a security title in property delivered to an insurer and foreclosure of the insurer's equity of redemption shall be deemed a transfer suffered by the insurer.

(25) “Federal home loan bank” or “FHLBank” shall mean a bank as defined in 12 U.S.C. § 1422(1)(A).

(26) “Federal Home Loan Bank Act” or “FHLBank Act” shall mean 12 U.S.C. § 1421 et seq.

(27) “Insurer-member” means an insurer that is a member of a federal home loan bank.

18 Del. C. 1953, § 5901;  56 Del. Laws, c. 380, § 1;  78 Del. Laws, c. 29, § 2;  79 Del. Laws, c. 207, § 2;  83 Del. Laws, c. 272, § 1; 
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