# Minn. Attorney General Can Sue Insurers 

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Minnesota State Attorney General Mike Hatch has gained authority equal to that of the Department of Commerce to sue insurance companies, a Minnesota Court of Appeals has ruled.

The decision results from a lawsuit that Attorney General Hatch filed against the Madison, Wis.-based American Family Mutual Insurance Company in March 1999, regarding the insurer’s payment of claims for storm damage to policyholders’ homes. The homes were damaged after a series of summer storms in 1998, which included severe winds and hail.

In the lawsuit, Attorney General Hatch alleged American Family Insurance had violated the state’s consumer protection laws and regulations of insurer trade practices by engaging in false advertisement and deceptive trade practices. He also claimed that they failed to provide full replacement coverage to the policyholders after their homes were damaged.