Second Circuit Holds New York Convention Is Self-Executing And Not Preempted By McCarran Ferguson Act

On May 8, 2025, United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit held, in Certain Underwriters at Lloyd's, London v. 3131 Veterans Blvd LLC,and Certain Underwriters at Lloyd's, London v. Mpire Properties LLC, Docket Nos. 23-1268-cv, 23-7613-cv, that the New York Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards ("New York Convention"), which governs international arbitrations, is self-executing and is not reverse preempted by the McCarran Ferguson Act, which ordinarily leaves the regulation of insurance to state law. By so concluding, the Second Circuit reversed its 1995 decision to the contrary in Stephens v. American International Insurance Co. ("Stephens")¹ and joined the Fifth Circuit's decision in Safety National² the Ninth Circuit's decision in CLMS Management,³ and the First Circuit's decision in Green Enterprises,⁴each of which has held that the New York Convention is self-executing. The Second Circuit's 3131 Veterans Blvd.