44-9106. Documents, materials, and other information; proprietary and trade secrets; confidential; use by director; director; powers.

(1) Documents, materials, or other information, including the corporate governance annual disclosure, in the possession or control of the Department of Insurance that are obtained by, created by, or disclosed to the director or any other person under the Corporate Governance Annual Disclosure Act are recognized by this state as being proprietary and to contain trade secrets. All such documents, materials, or other information shall be confidential by law and privileged, shall not be a public record subject to disclosure by the director pursuant to sections 84-712 to 84-712.09, shall not be subject to subpoena, and shall not be subject to discovery or admissible in evidence in any private civil action. However, the director is authorized to use the documents, materials, or other information in the furtherance of any regulatory or legal action brought as a part of the director’s official duties. The director shall not otherwise make the documents, materials, or other information public without the prior written consent of the insurer. Nothing in this section shall be construed to require written consent of the insurer before the director may share or receive confidential documents, materials, or other information related to the corporate governance annual disclosure pursuant to subsection (3) of this section to assist in the performance of the director’s regular duties.

(2) Neither the director nor any person who received documents, materials, or other information related to the corporate governance annual disclosure, through examination or otherwise, while acting under the authority of the director, or with whom such documents, materials, or other information are shared pursuant to the Corporate Governance Annual Disclosure Act, shall be permitted or required to testify in any private civil action concerning any confidential documents, materials, or other information subject to subsection (1) of this section.

(3) In order to assist in the performance of the director’s regulatory duties, the director:

(a) May, upon request, share documents, materials, or other information related to the corporate governance annual disclosure, including the confidential and privileged documents, materials, or other information subject to subsection (1) of this section, including proprietary and trade secret documents and materials, with other state, federal, and international financial regulatory agencies, including members of any supervisory college as described in section 44-2137.01, with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, and with third-party consultants pursuant to section 44-9107 if the recipient agrees in writing to maintain the confidentiality and privileged status of such documents, materials, or other information and has verified in writing the legal authority to maintain confidentiality; and

(b) May receive documents, materials, or other information related to the corporate governance annual disclosure, including otherwise confidential and privileged documents, materials, or other information, including proprietary and trade secret documents and materials, from regulatory officials of other state, federal, and international financial regulatory agencies, including members of any supervisory college as described in section 44-2137.01 and from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, and shall maintain as confidential or privileged any documents, materials, or other information received with notice or the understanding that it is confidential or privileged under the laws of the jurisdiction that is the source of the document, material, or other information.

(4) The sharing of information and documents by the director pursuant to the Corporate Governance Annual Disclosure Act shall not constitute a delegation of regulatory authority or rulemaking, and the director is solely responsible for the administration, execution, and enforcement of the provisions of the act.

(5) No waiver of any applicable privilege or claim of confidentiality in the documents, materials, or other information related to the corporate governance annual disclosure shall occur as a result of disclosure of such documents, materials, or other information to the director under this section or as a result of sharing as authorized in the Corporate Governance Annual Disclosure Act.

Source