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Read. Follow. Verify.Louisiana House Bill 765 establishes rules for joining liability insurers to final judgments and issuing reservation-of-rights notices
Last action · March 31, 2026: Read second time by title and referred to the Committee on Insurance.Sponsor: Aimee Adatto Freeman
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What This Bill Proposed
Liability insurers may now be joined as party defendants solely to enter a final judgment or enforce a settlement when is not otherwise authorized, provided the insurer did not timely deny coverage or reserve rights. Insurers denying coverage must provide written reservation-of-rights notices to all counsel of record and the named insured within specified deadlines.
Parties in civil lawsuits gain a specific post-verdict mechanism to bring liability insurers into the final judgment process, while insurers face stricter written notice deadlines and procedures when asserting s.
- Louisiana law places specific restrictions on when a plaintiff can file a direct action against a liability insurance company before obtaining a judgment against the insured. context
- The bill was introduced during the 2026 Regular Session by Representative Aimee Adatto Freeman and referred to the Committee on Insurance. context
Who It Would Have Affected
Groups the bill's text would have affected, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Liability insurers
Insurers must follow revised statutory timelines and procedures for issuing written reservation-of-rights notices and face specific rules regarding post-verdict joinder.
Civil litigants
Parties in a lawsuit gain a specified post-verdict mechanism to join liability insurers for final judgment or settlement enforcement under defined conditions.
Named insureds
Insured individuals or entities must receive specific written notices regarding whether their insurer is refusing to defend or defending under a reservation of rights.
Key Facts
- Establishes a post-verdict procedure allowing a liability insurer to be joined on motion of any party as a party defendant solely for entering final judgment or enforcing a settlement when direct action is not otherwise authorized.
- Prohibits joinder if the insurer timely denied coverage or reserved rights, unless there has been an adjudication in favor of coverage.
- Requires a plaintiff seeking to join an insurer post-verdict to have first filed a petition to establish coverage and obtained an adjudication in favor of coverage.
- Requires insurers to provide written notice of a reservation of rights to the insured within ninety days after determining the existence of a coverage defense.
Show all 5 facts
- Requires the insurer to provide written notice to all counsel of record that a reservation of rights has been issued and notify the insured whether the insurer refuses to defend or is providing a defense under a reservation of rights.
Frequently Asked Questions
When can a liability insurer be joined as a party defendant under this bill?
What notice must a liability insurer provide when denying coverage or reserving rights?
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
This bill did not become law - Died at adjournment · passed the House · in Senate committee.
Procedural history
10 actions- Mar 31, 2026SenateCommitteeRead second time by title and referred to the Committee on Insurance.
- Mar 30, 2026HouseFloorRead third time by title, roll called on final passage, yeas 100, nays 0. Finally passed, title adopted, ordered to the Senate.
- Mar 30, 2026SenateReceived in the Senate. Rules suspended. Read first time by title and placed on the Calendar for a second reading.
- Mar 26, 2026HouseScheduled for floor debate on 03/30/2026.
- Mar 25, 2026HouseFloorRead by title, ordered engrossed, passed to 3rd reading.
- Mar 24, 2026HouseCommitteeReported favorably (12-0).
Show 4 earlier actions
- Mar 9, 2026HouseIntroducedRead by title, under the rules, referred to the Committee on Insurance.
- Feb 27, 2026HousePrefiled.
- Feb 27, 2026HouseCommitteeUnder the rules, provisionally referred to the Committee on Insurance.
- Feb 27, 2026HouseFirst appeared in the Interim Calendar on 2/27/2026.
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Formalization of Post-Verdict Insurer Joinder
The bill creates a specific statutory path for joining liability insurers post-verdict or post-settlement when direct actions are restricted.
Connected Entities
Sources
www.legis.la.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance20Lowered because this bill did not pass (its text scored 60)
- Controversy40Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment5Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz25Current news / social attention level
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