Title 26, Title 26 — Insurance Code

Deposit in trust of premiums collected by mutual insurer; release upon issuance of certificate of authority. (a) All sums collected by a domestic mutual corporation as premiums or fees on qualifying applications for insurance therein shall be deposited in trust in a bank or trust…

Failure of domestic mutual insurer to qualify. If the proposed domestic insurer fails to complete its organization and to secure its certificate of authority within one (1) year from the date of its certificate of incorporation, its corporate powers cease, and the commissioner sh…

Additional kinds of insurance mutuals. After being authorized to transact one (1) kind of insurance, a mutual insurer may be authorized to transact any additional kinds of insurance as are permitted under W.S. 26-3-107, while otherwise in compliance with this code and while maint…

Membership in mutuals. (a) Each policyholder of a domestic mutual insurer, other than a reinsurance contract, is a member of the insurer with all rights and obligations of the membership, and the policy shall so specify. (b) Any person, government or governmental agency, state or…

Bylaws of mutuals. (a) A domestic mutual insurer shall have bylaws for the government of its affairs. The insurer's initial board of directors shall adopt original bylaws, subject to the approval of the insurer's members at the next meeting of members. (b) The bylaws shall contai…

Meetings of members of domestic mutual insurers; where held; annual meeting. (a) Meetings of members of a domestic mutual insurer shall be held in the city or town of its registered office in this state, except as may otherwise be provided in the insurer's bylaws with the commiss…

Meetings of members of domestic mutual insurers; special meetings. (a) A special meeting of the members of a mutual insurer may be held for any lawful purpose. The meeting shall be called by the corporate secretary pursuant to request of the insurer's president or of its board of…

Voting rights of members of mutual insurers. (a) Each member of a mutual insurer is entitled to one (1) vote upon each matter coming to a vote at meetings of members. (b) A member has the right to vote in person or by his written proxy filed with the corporate secretary not less …

Information to stockholders of domestic stock insurers; proxy regulations. (a) This section applies to all domestic stock insurers except: (i) A domestic stock insurer having less than one hundred (100) stockholders, except that if ninety-five percent (95%) or more of the insurer…

Boards of directors. (a) The affairs of each domestic insurer shall be managed by a board of directors consisting of not less than five (5) nor more than twenty-one (21) directors. (b) Directors, other than initial directors named in the insurer's articles of incorporation, shall…

Notice of changes of officers and directors. An insurer shall promptly give the commissioner written notice of any change of personnel among its directors or corporate officers.

Management in national emergency; purpose of emergency provisions. The specific purpose of W.S. 26-24-124 through 26-24-126 is to facilitate the continued operation of domestic insurers if a national emergency is caused by an attack on the United States or by a nuclear, atomic or…

Emergency bylaws. The board of directors of any domestic insurer may at any time adopt emergency bylaws, subject to repeal or change by action of those having power to adopt regular bylaws for the insurer, which shall be operative during a national emergency and which may, notwit…

Emergency provisions in lieu of bylaws. (a) If the board of directors of a domestic insurer does not adopt emergency bylaws, the following provisions are effective in case of a national emergency: (i) Three (3) directors constitute a quorum for the transaction of business at all …

Emergency succession of officers; change of home office location. (a) The board of directors of a domestic insurer, by resolution, may provide that: (i) In case of a national emergency and in case of the death or incapacity of the president, the secretary or the treasurer of the …

Pecuniary interests of officers or directors prohibited. (a) Any officer or director, or any member of any committee or an employee of a domestic insurer, who is charged with the duty of investing or handling the insurer's funds shall not: (i) Deposit or invest those funds except…

Management and exclusive agency contracts. (a) No domestic insurer shall make any contract in which any person is granted or is to enjoy in fact the management of the insurer to the substantial exclusion of its board of directors, or to have the controlling or preemptive right to…

Home office records and assets; penalty for removal; out-of-state branch operations. (a) Any domestic insurer shall: (i) Have and maintain its principal place of business and home office in this state; (ii) Keep in the principal place of business accurate and complete accounts an…

Voucher required for disbursements. (a) No insurer shall make any disbursement of seventy-five dollars ($75.00) or more, unless evidenced by a voucher or other document correctly describing the consideration for the payment and supported by a check or receipt endorsed or signed b…

Borrowing by insurers. (a) A domestic stock or mutual insurer may borrow money to defray the expenses of its organization, provide it with surplus funds or for any other purpose of its business, upon a written agreement that the money is required to be repaid only out of the insu…

Participating policies. (a) If provided for in its articles of incorporation or charter, a stock insurer or mutual insurer may: (i) Issue any of its policies or contracts with or without participation in profits, savings, unabsorbed portions of premiums or surplus; (ii) Classify …

Dividends to stockholders. (a) No domestic stock insurer shall pay any cash dividend to stockholders except out of that part of its available and accumulated surplus funds which is derived from realized net operating profits on its business and realized capital gains. (b) A cash …

Dividends to policyholders of mutual insurer. (a) The directors of a domestic mutual insurer may apportion and pay or credit to its members dividends only out of that part of its surplus funds which represents net realized savings, net realized earnings and net realized capital g…

Contingent liability of mutual member generally. (a) Except as otherwise provided in W.S. 26-24-138 with respect to nonassessable policies, each member of a domestic mutual insurer has a contingent liability, pro rata and not one (1) for another, for the discharge of its obligati…

Levy of contingent liability. (a) If at any time the assets of a domestic mutual insurer are less than its liabilities and the minimum amount of surplus required to be maintained by it under this code for authority to transact the kinds of insurance being transacted, and the defi…

Enforcement of contingent liability. (a) The insurer shall notify each member of the amount of the assessment to be paid by written notice mailed to the member's address last of record with the insurer. Failure of the member to receive the notice within the time specified therein…

Nonassessable policies. (a) A domestic mutual insurer while maintaining unimpaired surplus funds not less in amount than the minimum paid-in capital stock and surplus required to be maintained by a domestic stock insurer, formed under this code, for authority to transact the same…

Revocation of authority to issue policies without contingent liability. (a) The commissioner shall revoke the authority of a domestic mutual insurer to issue policies without contingent liability if: (i) At any time the insurer's assets are less than the sum of its liabilities an…

Issuance of policies in other states. A domestic insurer authorized to transact insurance in another jurisdiction may frame and issue policies for delivery in that jurisdiction pursuant to application for insurance solicited and obtained therein, in accordance with the laws there…

Impairment of capital or assets; generally. (a) If a domestic stock insurer's paid-in capital stock, as represented by the aggregate par value of its outstanding capital stock, or the amount of its surplus, or if the amount of a domestic mutual insurer's surplus, is less than the…

Impairment of capital or assets; liability of directors for deficiencies. If the insurer fails to cure the deficiency within the period allowed therefor under W.S. 26-24-141, the insurer's directors are personally liable for payment of any losses or insurance benefits on new insu…

Impairment of capital or assets; assessment of stockholders or members. (a) If an insurer is a stock insurer and receives the notice specified in W.S. 26-24-141(a) and to the extent that stockholders are subject to assessment under the insurer's articles of incorporation, by reso…

Impairment of capital or assets; transfer of shares during impairment. Transfer of shares of stock of a domestic stock insurer made at a time when the insurer's capital or surplus is impaired, as referred to in W.S. 26-24-141(a), whether before, during or after the period allowed…

Mutualization of stock insurer. (a) A stock insurer may become a mutual insurer under any reasonable plan and procedure the commissioner approves after a hearing thereon. (b) The commissioner shall not approve any plan, procedure or mutualization unless: (i) It is equitable to st…

Converting mutual insurer to stock insurer. (a) A mutual insurer may become a stock insurer under any plan and procedure the commissioner approves after a hearing thereon. (b) The commissioner shall not approve any plan or procedure unless: (i) It is equitable to the insurer's me…

Merger or consolidation of stock insurers. (a) A domestic stock insurer may merge or consolidate with one (1) or more domestic or foreign stock insurers by complying with the applicable provisions of the statutes of this state governing the merger or consolidation of stock corpor…

Acquisitions and exchanges in shares of another stock insurer. (a) A domestic stock insurer shall not acquire a controlling interest in the shares of another stock insurer by an exchange of securities or partly in exchange for securities and partly for cash or property, unless th…

Mutual and stock insurer merger prohibited; merger or consolidation of mutual insurers. (a) A domestic mutual insurer shall not merge or consolidate with a stock insurer. (b) A domestic mutual insurer may merge or consolidate with another mutual insurer under the applicable proce…

Bulk reinsurance. (a) A domestic insurer may reinsure all or substantially all of its business in force, or all or substantially all of a major class thereof, with another insurer, stock or mutual, by an agreement of bulk reinsurance after compliance with this section. No agreeme…

Mutual members' share of assets upon liquidation. (a) If a domestic mutual insurer is liquidated, its assets remaining after discharge of its indebtedness, policy obligations, repayment of contributed or borrowed surplus, if any, and expenses of administration, shall be distribut…

Scope and applicability of chapter. This chapter applies only to securities issued by domestic stock insurers.

"Equity security" defined. (a) As used in this chapter "equity security" means: (i) Any stock or similar security; (ii) Any security convertible, with or without consideration, into stock or a similar security, or carrying any warrant or right to subscribe to or purchase such a s…

Statement of ownership of equity securities; when filing required. (a) Any person who is the beneficial owner of more than ten percent (10%) of any class of any equity security of a domestic stock insurer, or who is a director or an officer of that insurer, shall: (i) File with t…

Recovery of profits from certain sales and purchases of equity securities. (a) For the purpose of preventing the unfair use of information obtained by the beneficial owner, director or officer because of his relationship to the insurer, any profit the beneficial owner, director o…

Unlawful sales of equity securities. (a) No beneficial owner, director or officer shall sell any equity security of the insurer if the person selling the security or his principal: (i) Does not own the security sold; (ii) If owning the security, does not deliver it against the sa…

Excepted securities. (a) W.S. 26-25-104 does not apply to any purchase and sale, or sale and purchase, and W.S. 26-25-105 does not apply to any sale, of an equity security of a domestic stock insurer, not then or previously held by the insurer in an investment account, by a deale…