Garamendi

INTRODUCTION

Adnan Mustafa Yousef and his company, American Liberty Bail Bonds, Inc. (American Liberty), are licensed bail agents. In 2004, the Orange County District Attorney filed a felony complaint charging them with various crimes relating to their bail bond business. Based on that felony complaint, California’s Insurance Commissioner, John Garamendi, and the California Department of Insurance (collectively the Commissioner), suspended Yousef and American Liberty from “participating in the business of an insurer or production agency.” The Commissioner issued the suspension order under Insurance Code section 1748.5, subdivision (e)(1), which provides that if a “subject person” has been charged with certain types of crimes and if the Commissioner finds that a failure to issue a suspension order threatens an insurer’s solvency or may cause financial or other injury to any person, then the Commissioner shall immediately suspend that subject person from participating in the business of an insurer or production agency. Section 1748.5, subdivision (e)(1), neither gives a subject person the right to a presuspension hearing nor were Yousef and American Liberty given a…