শুক্রবার, ৯ নভেম্বর, ২০১২

Biden to appear on NBC's 'Parks and Recreation'

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'Harp Sponge' Discovered In Deep Ocean Off California

  • Super Egg

    Cookie Smith shows off a normal egg and a "super egg" Wednesday, May 30, 2012, in Abilene, Texas. Cookie Smith went to collect eggs from her three laying hens on Monday afternoon, and discovered one normal egg and one "super egg" in her coop.

  • Dog With World's Largest Eyes

    Bruschi, a four-year-old black and white Boston Terrier, who lives with his owner, Victoria Reed, in Grapevine, Texas, holds the Guinness World Record for "dog with the largest eyes" -- a whopping 1.1 inch in diameter.

  • Calico Lobster

    This May 9, 2012 photo provided by the New England Aquarium in Boston shows a rare calico lobster that could be a 1-in-30 million, according to experts. The lobster, discovered by Jasper White's Summer Shack and caught off Winter Harbor, Maine, is being held at the New England Aquarium for the Biomes Marine Biology Center in Rhode Island. The lobster is dark with bright orange and yellow spots. (AP Photo/New England Aquarium, Tony LaCasse)

  • 30,000 Bees Stuck In New Jersey Attic

    Bee removal expert Gary Schempp removed a 25-pound hive from the attic of a home in Cape May, N.J. The hive had 30,000 bees living in it.

  • Giant Rat

    An English man named Brian Watson killed a large rat his granddaughter's boyfriend found while cutting grass on April 21, <em><a href="http://news.sky.com/home/strange-news/article/16213384" target="_hplink">Sky News</a></em> reports. The water rat was so large, Watson broke a boat paddle trying to kill the critter.

  • Giant Shark Caught In Mexico.

    Two fishermen in northeastern Mexico claim they netted a dead great white shark estimated to be near 20-feet-long on April 15, 2012.

  • Prada

    This March 8, 2012 photo shows Nicole Andree feeding a hamburger to her dog, Prada, a 4-year-old pit bull mix, at an animal control facility in Nashville, Tenn. Andree is fighting a lengthy legal battle to save her dog's life after the animal was ordered euthanized for attacking other dogs.

  • Homer Simpson Fish

    The Stargazer fish which bears an uncanny resemblance to Homer Simpson. (Caters News / Getty Images)

  • Kitten Found In Car Engine

    After driving about 85 miles to Santa Cruz, Calif., a man discovered that this runaway kitten had been inside his car's engine in March 2012.

  • World's Smallest Dog?

    At two weeks old, Beyonce, a Dachsund mix born at a Northern California animal shelter, is just under four inches long and is in the running for the title of World's Smallest Dog. Here she is pictured resting on an iPhone.

  • Piglet In Hotel Lobby

    This adorable injured baby pig was found roaming a hotel lobby near Honolulu's airport. The Hawaiian Humane Society renamed her Pukalani and says she'll be available for adoption later in March.

  • Cat Cafes Threatened In Tokyo

    TOKYO - JANUARY 20: A woman strokes a cat at Nekorobi cat cafe on January 20, 2009 in Tokyo, Japan. Changes to Japan's Animal Protection Law threaten the future of these furry bars by imposing a curfew on cats and dogs. (Photo by Junko Kimura/Getty Images)

  • A Woolly Mammoth In Siberia?

    This newly released video taken during the summer of 2011 allegedly shows a living woolly mammoth crossing a river in Siberia. There is much speculation and debate as to whether this is, indeed, a living specimen of prehistoric elephant-related animals that were thought to be extinct.

  • Albino Penguin -- Jan. 2012

    A rare, mostly white-colored penguin was discovered in Antarctica in early January 2012. The picture was snapped by naturalist David Stephens.

  • 'Cupid' The Cat -- Jan. 2012

    This stray orange tabby in Houston earned the nickname 'Cupid' after he survived a piercing shoulder to shoulder wound in January 2012. A vet safely removed the arrow and 'Cupid' is expected to make a complete recovery.

  • Lucy: World's Smallest Working Dog -- Nov. 2011

    Lucy, a mini Yorkshire terrier from Absecon, New Jersey, is now in the Guinness Book of World Records. Weighing just 2 1/2 pounds, Lucy was named the world's smallest working dog last week, bumping out a 6.6-pound police dog in Japan.

  • Polydactyl Kittens -- Jan. 2012

    Undated Cats Protection handout photo of 4-month-old polydactyl kittens named Fred (left) and Ned (right), currently in the care of Cats Protection, Gosport Town Branch in the United Kingdom. They will shortly be going to their new home once they've been neutered. Ned has an extra eight digits, while his brother Fred has 10 more than the usual 18, making a total of 54 digits between them.

  • Crocodile in Belgium -- Dec. 2011

    A man holds a crocodile with tape around its mouth, as workers from the Natuurhulpcentrum, a wildlife rehabilitation center, collect several crocodiles at a villa in Lapscheure, near the Dutch border, on Dec. 22, 2011. Police discovered eleven Nile crocodiles and one alligator (all alive) in a villa rented by a German man, Rolf D., during an investigation into financial fraud.

  • Booie The Smoking Chimp Dies

    Booie, a chimpanzee that kicked a smoking habit and used sign language to beg for candy, died at the age of 44 at a California animal refuge in mid-December.

  • Taxidermied Squirrel -- Dec. 2011

    Rick Nadeau has saved up quite a nut by creating taxidermied squirrels that he puts in unusual outfits. He sells his works starting at $65 all the way up to $200.

  • Giant Crocodile Captured In Philippines -- Sept. 2011

    In this Sept. 4, 2011, photo, Mayor Cox Elorde of Bunawan township, Agusan del Sur Province, pretends to measure a huge crocodile, known as Lolong, which was captured by residents and crocodile farm staff along a creek in Bunawan late Saturday in southern Philippines. Elorde said that dozens of villagers and experts ensnared the 21-foot (6.4-meter) male crocodile along a creek in his township after a three-week hunt. It was one of the largest crocodiles to be captured alive in the Philippines in recent years.

  • Skywalker The Rodeo Bull Gets Stuck -- Nov. 2011

    Skywalker, a rodeo bull in Hawaii, could not eat or drink while a 50-pound tire was stuck around his head. A ranch hand was able to pry it off after Skywalker exhausted himself, allowing the worker to get near the cranky animal.

  • Gorilla Check-Up -- Oct. 2011

    Yakini the gorilla received a medical check-up from vets at Melbourne Zoo before being moved to a new multimillion-dollar exhibit at Werribee Open Range Zoo, on Oct. 28, 2011, in Melbourne, Australia.

  • 3-Eyed Nuclear Fish -- Oct. 2011

    Fishermen landed a three-eyed fish in Argentina near a nuclear reactor in October 2011.

  • Earthquake Dog -- Oct. 2011

    Roman Akisen carries Cip, a 5-year-old German shepherd who found 18-year-old Imdat Padak alive under the rubble of a collapsed building more than 100 hours after a magnitude 7.2 quake, in Ercis, Turkey, Oct. 28, 2011.

  • Tiger Goes To The Dentist -- Oct. 2011

    Dr. Doug Luiten drills the tooth of Kunali, a 300-pound, 7-year-old Siberian tiger, during root canal surgery at the Alaska Zoo in Anchorage, Alaska, Oct. 20, 2011. This was the first procedure in a recently opened operating room and the first for the zoo's new veterinary table, complete with hydraulic lift and fold-out leafs to accommodate limbs and tails.

  • Moose In A Pool -- Oct. 2011

    This New Hampshire moose was swimming a little too deep, forcing nine rescue workers to help remove it from the pool.

  • Mass For Animals -- Oct. 2011

    Gil Florini, of Saint-Pierre-d'Arene's church, blesses donkeys with holy water after a mass dedicated to animals on Oct. 9, 2011, in the southeastern French city of Nice.

  • World's Smallest Living Cat -- Oct. 2011

    Fizz Girl, a Munchkin Cat from San Diego, Calif., has grabbed the record title for Shortest Living Cat. Measuring in at just 6 inches tall from floor to shoulder, Fizz Girl weighs 4 pounds, 2.3 ounces. Munchkin cats are a special breed that have little legs caused by a naturally occurring genetic mutation.

  • Kayaker Snags Shark -- Sept. 2011

    This is the jaw-dropping moment a canoeist landed a 6-foot shark after it dragged him through the water for 10 minutes. Brave Rupert Kirkwood, 51, had paddled a mile off the United Kingdom's Devon coast when he suddenly felt a snag on his line. The 70-pound beast nearly pulled him overboard, before pulling his 16-foot canoe through the water as he desperately clung on. After 10 minutes of wrestling with the beast, he eventually hauled the massive fish on board.

  • Baby Elephant at San Diego Zoo -- Sept. 2011

    A newborn African elephant lifted his trunk in search of his mother at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park. In this rare moment, the calf stood alone after he had wandered off a few steps, but shortly thereafter, his mother, 5-year-old sister Khosi (koh-see), and 2-year-old brother Ingadze (in-Gahd-zee) rushed over to tend to the unnamed calf. The Safari Park is now home to 18 elephants (eight adults and 10 youngsters).

  • Elephant Polo -- Sept. 2011

    Elephant polo players from the Spice girls team (left) and the British Airways British Army team battle it out for 5th place during the final day at the King's Cup Elephant polo tournament Sept. 11, 2011, in Hua Hin, Thailand.This year marked the 10th edition of the polo tournament with 12 international teams participating for the unusual annual charity sports event.

  • Orangutan Quits Smoking

    An orangutan in Malaysia is kicking its smoking habit. Wildlife officials have removed Shirley from a state zoo after the captive primate was regularly spotted smoking cigarettes that zoo visitors had tossed into its enclosure.

  • Boy Suckles From A Cow

    Tha Sophat, a 20-month-old Cambodian boy, suckles from a cow in Koak Roka village, Siem Reap province, Cambodia, Friday, Sept. 9, 2011. Tha Sophat started suckling the cow in July after he saw a calf do the same since his parents moved to Thailand in search of work, said his grandfather UmOeung.

  • This Little PIggie Has Two Snouts

    This tiny porker has an excuse for making a pig of himself at mealtimes. He really does have two mouths to feed. The bizarre two-month-old youngster -- part of a litter born on a farm in northern China -- can use both his mouths to eat and appears otherwise normal, say his owners.

  • Drunk Moose

    A moose is seen stuck in an apple tree in Gothenburg, Sweden, September 6, 2011. The police believe the moose was trying to eat apples from the tree and became intoxicated by fermented apples. The moose was freed by police officers and after a dose on the lawn, he sobered up and returned to the woods.

  • Woman Punches Bear to Save Dog

    Brook Collins holds her dog, Fudge, at her home in Juneau, Alaska on Tuesday, Aug. 30, 2011. Collins punched a black bear in the snout after the bear attacked Fudge on Sunday, Aug. 28.

  • Elephant with Prosthetic Leg

    Motala, age 50, rests in the afternoon sun with the new prosthetic made for her at the Friends of the Asian Elephant (FAE) elephant hospital in the Mae Yao National Reserve August 29, 2011 Lampang,Thailand. Motala lost a foot many years back after stepping on a land mine and now is on her third prosthetic, as they need to be changed according to the weight of the elephant. The world's first elephant hospital assists in medical care and helps to promote a better understanding of the elephant's physiology, important in treating them for illness. For generations elephants have been a part of the Thai culture, although today the Thai elephant mostly is domesticated animal, since Thailand now has few working elephants. Many are used in the tourism sector at special elephant parks or zoos, where they perform in shows. In some cases Thailand is still deals with roaming elephants on the city streets, usually after the mahout, an elephant driver, becomes unemployed, which often causes the elephant serious stress.

  • Elephant in Water Reservoir

    Indian army personnel use a bulldozer during a rescue mission to save a wild elephant trapped in a water reservoir tank at Bengdubi army cantonment area some 25 kms from Siliguri on August 30, 2011. A wild elephant fell into the water reservoir tank as a herd crossed the area. Army personnel of 16 Field Ammunition Depot along with wildlife elephant squad of Mahananda wildlife sanctuary joined forces to save the animal.

  • Open Rabbit Sport Tournament

    Lisa Marie Bach leads her pet rabbit Marie through an obstacle course in the middle-weight category at the 5th Open Rabbit Sport Tournament (5. offene Kaninchensport Turnier) on August 28, 2011 in Rommerz near Fulda, Germany. Eighty rabbits competed in light-weight, middle-weight and jumping-for-points categories at today's tournament in Rommerz that is based on Kanin Hop, or Rabbit Hopping. Rabbit Hopping is a growing trend among pet rabbit owners in Central Europe and the first European Championships are scheduled to be held later this year in Switzerland.

  • Hippo Goes To The Dentist

    North Carolina Zoo Chief Veterinarian Dr. Mike Loomis recently returned from Bayamon, Puerto Rico, where he helped perform a dental procedure on a 3,000-lb. old friend. Loomis, along with veterinarians and keepers from the Parque de las Sciencias museums in Bayamon, conducted dental surgery on "Tomy," a 39-year-old male hippopotamus that the N.C. Zoo veterinarian has been treating on a semi-regular basis for two decades.

  • Dolphin's Fake Tail

    Winter, a six-year-old dolphin at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium in Florida, lost her tail when she was three months and now uses a prosthetic tail made especially for her.

  • Otis The Skydiver

    "Otis'' the pug gets his harness put on him before making his 64th skydive at the Parachute Center in Acampo with his master, veteran skydiver Will DaSilva of Galt. Otis knows that harness means he's going skydiving and sits patiently while it is put on him.

  • City Chicks

    John Huntington poses with one of his chickens on a lead in Sydney, Australia, on Aug. 15, 2011. Mr Hungtington's 'City Chicks' are chickens for those living in an urban enviroment, complete with small walking leads and harnesses and elasticised nappies. 'City Chicks' will be showcased at Sydney's ABC Gardening Australia Expo.

  • Dolphin Flip

    A dolphin flips in the air and splashes water over a watching crowd during a summer attraction at an aquarium in Tokyo on August 17, 2011. Theme parks and attactions such as this one are booming in August when many people try to beat the summer heat by visiting indoor attractions.

  • Sprinkles The Koala

    'Sprinkles' the Koala following her life saving radiation treatment at the Brisbane Veterinary Specialist Centre in Brisbane, Australia, August 9, 2011. Suffering from an extremely rare case of excessive drooling, sprinkles developed a skin infection due to the excessive moisture flowing from her mouth.

  • Sprinkles The Koala

    Veterinary specialist Dr Rod Straw holds 'Sprinkles' the Koala following her life saving radiation treatment at the Brisbane Veterinary Specialist Centre in Brisbane, Australia. Suffering from an extremely rare case of excessive drooling, sprinkles developed a skin infection due to the excessive moisture flowing from her mouth.

  • Mobile Home Filled With 154 Reptiles

    Inside Walter Kidd's North Carolina trailer home were 154 reptiles, including cobras, vipers and Gila monsters. About 100 of the animals were dead and frozen, according to the Henderson County Sheriff's Office.

  • Camel In The Family

    t's not every day you can say that a camel has shared your breakfast - unless you're Nathan and Charlotte Anderson-Dixon. Each morning they and their 18-month-son Reuben are joined by pet camel Joe, who pokes his head through their conservatory window to help himself to something to eat. The three-year-old happily munches eats bread, fruit and cereal plucked from the table at the family's detached country farmhouse. Joe, who measures 17.5 hands, loves bananas on toast but hates toast with cheese or Marmite. He lives with four other camels but is the only one to share breakfast with his owners. The others have to eat hay, barley, straw and corn mix in their stable in Ashbourne, Derbyshire. Nathan, 32, has owned Joe for two years and uses him for camel racing.

  • Camel In The Family

    Charlotte Anderson-Dixon pushes her 18-month-old son Reuben on the swing as Joe the camel watches.

  • Camel In The Family

    Nathan Anderson-Dixon, his wife Charlotte, their 18-month-old son Reuben, Joe the camel and a reindeer.

  • Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/09/harp-sponge-discovered_n_2101578.html

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    বৃহস্পতিবার, ১ নভেম্বর, ২০১২

    Accused UBS rogue trader: 'I lost control'

    LONDON (Reuters) - Former UBS trader Kweku Adoboli told a London court on Tuesday he had "lost control" of his trading in the summer of 2011 but insisted he never acted dishonestly in the frantic weeks that resulted in losses of $2.3 billion.

    Adoboli also attacked the culture of investment banks, arguing that compliance rules were "aspirational" and that traders knew they had to bend rules to achieve the goals set by senior management.

    The 32-year-old British-educated Ghanaian, who used to be a senior trader on the Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) desk at UBS's London offices, was arrested on September 15, 2011. He denies two counts of fraud and four of false accounting.

    The prosecution says he traded far in excess of his risk limits and concealed his positions with fictitious accounting. Adoboli says everything he did was for the benefit of UBS.

    The ex-trader said his troubles started on July 1, 2011, when, under intense pressure from fellow traders and managers, he abandoned a long-standing bearish stance and flipped his trading position to a long one. Just after he did so, the market started to sell off.

    "I lost control. The result of that loss of control was an increasing number of breaks (accounting problems), a more frantic trading activity, a less controlled decision-making process," he said.

    Later that month, as losses mounted in a volatile market, Adoboli recalled that exhaustion and stress levels reached such a peak that it caused him to briefly break up with his long-term girlfriend.

    He said that on the evening of July 23 the couple had been supposed to go out for dinner but he found himself unable to talk to her.

    "I went a bit catatonic. I was curled up on my bed. She was asking me what was wrong. I just couldn't explain," he said.

    About two weeks later he reunited with his girlfriend and she, over time, persuaded him to stop trying to recoup the losses and open up to someone about his true position.

    "In the end she was the strength. She was the person who said to me 'Look, Kwek, if you can't do this, if you can't fix this, then look within yourself and maybe go and tell someone.'

    "This is going to kill you. You can't keep fighting this battle that you are clearly not winning," Adoboli quoted his girlfriend as telling him.

    He said that by the end of August he came around to her point of view.

    "I had told loads of people different stories about what the trades were to buy us more time to recoup the losses. Eventually I accepted that I would have to tell someone about the true nature, the full scale of the losses," he said.

    MORE RISKS, MORE PROFIT

    In a separate strand of his evidence, Adoboli said he did not believe he had done anything dishonest because he was trying to deliver what UBS management wanted: greater risks in pursuit of greater profits.

    He said that in the spring of 2011 the ETFs desk was doing so well that it was held up as an example to other UBS trading desks.

    "There were no secrets. There was no hiding. There was no holding back," he said, describing that period.

    "We were told to go for it. We went for it. We were told to push the boundaries ... We found the boundary. We found the edge. We fell off the edge and I got arrested," he said.

    Adoboli said UBS and investment banks in general set traders unrealistic objectives and everyone knew they could only be met with a certain amount of rule-bending in areas like risk limits.

    "The policies were aspirational policies, and on the ground - at the coalface - you had to put in place mechanisms to achieve what you had to achieve," he said.

    "In order to achieve what the bank leadership wanted us to achieve, we cannot stick to the policy. We are allowed, it is approved, in reality, that we're going to try to meet in the middle somewhere."

    The trial continues. (Editing by Robin Pomeroy)

    Source: http://news.yahoo.com/accused-ubs-rogue-trader-lost-control-152349105--sector.html

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    How Hurricane Sandy became a snowstorm

    Sandy just won't quit. The hurricane-turned-post-tropical-cyclone blew through the Caribbean last week, killing at least 69 people, most of them in Haiti and Cuba. Sandy then churned up the U.S. East Coast, making landfall Monday night in New Jersey and bringing massive floods to Atlantic City, Manhattan and other coastal areas.

    And now Sandy is a snowstorm.

    Thanks to a collision with cold air flowing from the Arctic, the post-tropical storm (so called because it has moved out of tropical latitudes), has so far dumped 26 inches (66 centimeters) of snow on Redhouse, Md., 24 inches (61 cm) in Alpine Lake, W.Va., and 18 inches (46 cm) in Newfound Gap, Tenn., according to The Weather Channel's Mike Bettes.

    The National Weather Service (NWS) has issued blizzard warnings for high-elevation areas of the central Appalachians, and a swath of lower elevation areas from western Maryland southwest into eastern Tennessee and western North Carolina are under winter storm warnings and advisories. Sandy's remnants could drop up to 3 feet (0.9 meters) of snow in parts of West Virginia and up to 2 feet (0.6 m) in southwestern Virginia and eastern Kentucky before moving into Canada on Wednesday, according to the NWS. [ On the Ground: Hurricane Sandy in Images ]

    1. Science news from NBCNews.com

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        Science editor Alan Boyle's blog: Paranormal investigator Joe Nickell has busted a lot of ghostly myths over the past 40 years ? but the spookiest part of his job comes when he actually catches a ghost red-handed.

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    The transformation of Sandy from rainstorm to snowstorm is a consequence of a blast of Arctic air that has fed the storm even as it has moved out of tropical waters. Normally, a tropical storm like Sandy would weaken as it moves northward into cooler waters. But a dip in the polar jet stream has fueled the storm, prompting some to call it a "nor'eastercane," a combination of hurricane and nor'easter. Nor'easters are storms driven by frigid polar air. (The moniker "Frankenstorm" also stems from this weather mash-up.)

    This polar air on Sandy's western side is turning rain to snow ? a situation that's not entirely unprecedented.

    According to the Washington Post's Capital Weather Gang, a "snowicane" hit upstate New York and New England in 1804, and 1962's Hurricane Ginny dumped snow in Maine. In 2005, the Category 5 storm Wilma fed into a nor'easter that dropped up to 20 inches (50 cm) of snow in West Virginia and New England.

    Follow Stephanie Pappas on Twitter @sipappasor LiveScience @livescience. We're also on Facebook and Google+.

    ? 2012 OurAmazingPlanet. All rights reserved. More from OurAmazingPlanet.

    Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/49612218/ns/technology_and_science-science/

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    Beyond Structured Settlements: Stone Street Capital v. McClendon

    A Louisiana state court has ruled in Stone Street Capital v. McClendon that MetLife and Travelers had no right to withhold a structured settlement payment from Stone Street Capital which Stone Street had previously purchased, with court approval pursuant to the Louisiana structured settlement protection act, despite the original annuitant/payee's death prior to the payment date.

    This 2012 case, which was featured in a presentation by Earl Nesbitt at the NASP 2012 Annual Conference, reinforces the finality of settlement transfer orders. According to Nesbitt, it also calls into question other cases where Travelers, as owner of structured settlement annuities, has ordered structured settlement annuity issuers to stop making payments to transfer companies following the death of the original annuitant/payees despite existing court orders approving those transfers.

    Background

    • In 1990, Shelia McClendon entered into a structured settlement in which Travelers Insurance Company, as assignee, purchased an annuity from Travelers Life and Annuity Company, which later became MetLife Annuity Company of Connecticut in 2006.
    • On July 27, 2007, Shelia McClendon entered into a purchase and sale agreement with Stone Street Capital to sell her right to a $51,800.51 payment due October 15, 2010.
    • On September 20, 2007 the same court which subsequently heard the Stone Street v. McClendon case signed an order approving the transfer.
    • In the 2007 transfer proceeding, Stone Street gave proper notice to MetLife (as annuity issuer) and Travelers (as annuity owner) neither of whom raised any objections.
    • MetLife subsequently sent a letter to Stone Street advising that MetLife would make the assigned payment to Stone Street in compliance with the order.
    • The transfer order provided an indemnity, allegedly requested by Travelers and MetLife, to protect them from any further suit by any party asserting an ownership claim or a right to the assigned payment.
    • Shelia McClendon died in 2008.
    • Pursuant to instructions from Travelers, MetLife did not pay Stone Street the October 15, 2010 payment when due.
    • Following Stone Street's inquiry, MetLife and Travelers informed Stone Street that other persons had competing demands for the October 15, 2010 payment and, to resolve the conflict, Stone Street must file a declaratory judgment action which Stone Street did file.
    • On July 15, 2011, Travelers filed a preemptory exception of nonjoinder of indispensable parties.
    • Travelers' exception claimed Shelia McClendon had passed away and that both her estate and the estate of Peatrice Jackson, whom Travelers claimed was the annuity beneficiary, were indispensable parties to Stone Street's declaratory judgment lawsuit.
    • On August 4, 2011 MetLife answered Stone Street's petition and included a reconventional demand for consursus (a form of interpleader).
    • None of the parties disputed, either at the time of the 2007 transfer hearing or at the time of the subsequent declaratory judgment suit, that Stone Street properly complied with Louisiana's structured settlement protection act.

    Stone Street's Argument

    • The declaratory judgment action was filed against MetLife and Travelers and also against the parties Travelers told Stone Street to file against.
    • Stone Street subsequently asserted, however, that MetLife was the only party against whom Stone Street needed a judgment in this lawsuit.
    • Therefore, Stone Street asked that everyone else be dismissed from Stone Street's motion for summary judgment.
    • According to Stone Street, the declaratory judgment proceeding should not have been necessary.
    • Stone Street fully complied with the Louisiana structured settlement protection act and a transfer order was previously entered without objections from MetLife or Travelers.
    • The 2007 transfer order required MetLife to make the October 15, 2010 payment to Stone Street.
    • MetLife ignored their own prior letter wherein MetLife stated it received the order and agreed to comply.
    • The principle of res judicata should prevent MetLife from pleading concursus because its claim was previously prosecuted to judgment.
    • Traveler's request for a declaratory judgment and MetLife's consursus proceeding represented "improper accumulations of actions".
    • Although some state structured settlement protection statutes require a change of annuity beneficiary, the Louisiana statute does not because beneficiaries are not required to receive notice or be named parties.
    • Louisiana law further holds:
      • Until a person dies that person has the right to sell assets that person owns.
      • Except for irrevocable beneficiaries, no one has a vested right to the status of a beneficiary under a life insurance contract if the death of the insured has not occurred.

    MetLife's Argument

    • Neither MetLife nor Travelers were parties to the 2007 transfer order so that order had no res judicata effect on MetLife.
    • Travelers, the annuity owner, told MetLife not to make the October 15, 2010 payment to Stone Street.
    • Nothing in the 2007 transfer order addressed what would happen to the October 15, 2010 payment if Shelia McClendon died prior to that date.
    • When Shelia McClendon died, her named beneficiary in the annuity contract was Peatrice Jackson who predeceased McClendon.
    • Peatrice Jackson's heirs filed a competing claim for the October 15, 2010 payment.
    • Although Stone Street alleges Shelia McClendon filed a request to change her annuity beneficiary, neither MetLife nor Travelers had any record of receiving this request.
    • Because a discrepancy existed among the documents submitted to MetLife, a concursus proceeding became necessary and appropriate.

    Travelers' Argument

    • The Louisiana structured settlement protection act did not impact Shelia McClendon's settlement agreement.
    • The settlement agreement remained valid even following the transfer agreement.
    • The transfer agreement did not change either the settlement agreement or the annuity contract beneficiary designation.
    • The settlement agreement and the annuity contract both provide that Peatrice Jackson, the named beneficiary, would receive the future payments in the event of Shelia McClendon's death.
    • If Stone Street and Shelia McClendon had followed through on their request to name Stone Street the annuity beneficiary, this declaratory judgment lawsuit would not have been necessary.
    • Travelers had no proof that Shelia McClendon made any attempt to initiate a beneficiary change.
    • Therefore, material issues of fact existed concerning: 1) who was Shelia McClendon's rightful beneficiary; and 2) who was entitled to the October 15, 2010 payment.

    Judgment - Louisiana District Court Judge Kay Bates:

    • Dismissed MetLife's concursus with prejudice and costs payable by MetLife.
    • Denied Travelers' exception of failure to join indispensable parties with costs payable by Travelers.
    • Granted Stone Street's motion for summary judgment with costs payable by MetLife.
    • Granted Stone Street's motion to dismiss the other defendants without prejudice.
    • Ordered MetLife to remit the October 15, 2010 payment to Stone Street within 15 days of the mailing of the judgment.

    Judge Bates' Reasoning

    • In the 2007 transfer proceeding, Shelia McClendon and Stone Street were parties, and MetLife and Travelers were properly notified and served with the petition and order.
    • Under the Louisiana structured settlement protection act, Shelia McClendon was clearly entitled to sell the October 15, 2010 payment.
    • The 2007 transfer order was valid, final, and not subject to appeal as all delays had passed.
    • MetLife's claims against Stone Street arose out of the same subject matter as the 2007 transfer proceeding.
    • MetLife's issues existed when the 2007 transfer order was signed and neither MetLife nor Travelers objected at that time.
    • Therefore, MetLife's concursus is barred by res judicata.
    • Neither MetLife, nor Travelers, nor any of the other claimants had any continuing interest in the October 15, 2010 payment.
    • Because Stone Street established it was entitled to the October 15, 2010 payment as a matter of law, no genuine issue of material fact remained.

    Additional Resources

    • For a 2009 California appellate case addressing the finality of structured settlement transfer orders, see Henderson v. Ramos reported in "Fresno County Factoring Cases" - Part 1 and Part 2 .
    • For S2KM's complete reporting about the structured settlement secondary market, see the structured settlement wiki.
    • For a more comprehensive and updated analysis of structured settlement transfers, see Chapter 16 of "Structured Settlements and Periodic Payment Judgements" (S2P2J).

    Source: http://s2kmblog.typepad.com/rethinking_structured_set/2012/10/stone-street-capital-v-mcclendon.html

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