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Standards for insurance accounting
The Financial Services Authority (FSA) is considering the introduction of more flexible regime of prudential standards for insurance companies. These are to be based on the concepts of Basel Capital Accord for banks, believed by the FSA to be..
Online Published Date:
01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
APRA criticised over HIH collapse
The ‘surprise’ crash of Australia’s giant HIH Insurance, parent company of FAI and CIC, has led to criticism of the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) for not giving the market sufficient and timely information on..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Lloyd’s chairman says losses are ‘no surprise’
Commenting on forecasts of £1.11bn losses for the 1999 year of account, Lloyd’s chairman Sax Riley said they were ‘no surprise… entirely consistent with the results of the rest of the nonlife industry.’
Looking at the..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Petrobras P-36
Explosions killed 10 workers and led to the capsize and loss of the Petrobras offshore platform P-36 off Brazil. A US$500mn policy was placed with the Brazilian state-owned insurer, reinsurance was placed worldwide by Aon with Norway’s Gard..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
CGL response to court order, only
Following on last month’s report in LRI
of a California supreme court ruling limiting insurers’ indemnity of cleanup costs under CGL policies to those ordered by a court, more detail has come to light.
The case at issue was Certain..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
State Farm US$1.05bn verdict
The Illinois court of appeal has upheld the 1999 Illinois state court finding that the use of less expensive – rather than manufacturer’s original – generic parts for motor repairs constituted consumer fraud and breach of..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Pressure from Grace’ chapter 11 filing
In filing for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, chemical company W R Grace joins Owens Corning and a unit of Armstrong Holdings, which have filed in the last few months, and transfers pressure to others.
Faced with an 81% rise in claims over those..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Endorsement of bill of lading moves liability
It was held that a shipping intermediate holder of a bill of lading ceases to be liable under the bill once it is endorsed and passed to another person. This is in relation to a shipment of propane gas from Saudi Arabia to Sweden (in 1993), in the..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Awards and settlements
Holiday company to pay for pool injury
leading to severe brain damage. The boy, aged six at the time, almost drowned in a hotel swimming pool while his parents were attending to a younger child. They had only arrived a few hours before and the..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Irish litigation guide published
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Multiparty actions book published
A new book, Multiparty Actions
, has been published addressing the problems of group litigation, particularly in the light of the new English Civil Procedure Rules. It covers investigation and pleading of claim, management and funding issues...
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Certificates for state support
Measures to support difficult personal injury cases (such as those against drug companies) requiring extensive initial work were envisaged in a special government scheme as legal aid was phased out. However, in the first year only 15 such..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Tribunal reform delayed
An overhaul of the employment tribunal system, due in April, has been postponed at least until mid-July. A letter to business leaders from the Department of Trade & Industry explained that a number of users wanted more time to understand the..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Limited liability partnerships
New rules came into force on 6 April allowing professional services firms to protect themselves against catastrophic negligence claims through conversion to limited liability status. Many of the big accountancy firms are making active plans for..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Critical illness regulation?
The Association of British Insurers has welcomed Treasury proposals to bring critical illness insurance and income protection plans under regulation. This is a tiny market with only 30,000 policies extant, but is likely to grow rapidly. Customer..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
GISC fights off challenge
The Office of Fair Trading has dismissed a request from the Institute of Insurance Brokers to investigate the competitive aspects of the potential sole regulator, the General Insurance Standards Council (GISC), on competition grounds. At mid-April..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
No sea change for City institutions
The long-awaited DTI report into the Maxwell affair and MGN flotation has produced only modest proposals on the governance of City institutions, shadowing guidelines for ‘best practice’ already in place.
Recommendations include:
..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Increase in German D&O
Forecasting a fivefold increase in directors’ and officers’ (D&O) liability premiums over the next five years to DM1bn, Axel Horster of GeneralCologne Re believes claims are due for a sharp increase and insurers should raise premium..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
DBV doubles medical liability cover
Responding to increased levels of compensation, Germany’s largest medical liability insurer, DBV-Winterthur, has almost doubled the level of cover available from €3mn to €5mn, with premiums remaining almost stable. Although it is..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
DAS and Greystoke team up
..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Independent moves
Independent Insurance is reported to be paying £39mn in cash (raised from sale of assets from within their investment portfolio) towards the £105mn premium for two reinsurance policies yielding £248mn cover, taken out to protect the..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Claims Direct issues third profits warning
A third profits warning has been issued by Claims Direct, looking to a loss of £20mn for the year ended 31 March 2001 rather than the £20mn profit predicted by auditors on flotation in July last year. The loss reflects £15mn premium..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
A M Best rates The Underwriter at A-
Despite its short operating history since authorisation in October 1999,The Underwriter Insurance has received A M Best’s A- (excellent) financial strength rating, based on ‘excellent capitalisation, strong operating performance …..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Liability limits increase
A study by Marsh USA has found that businesses of all sizes increased their liability limits in 2000 by an average of 26% over 1996. Of the 2,247 surveyed, one in 12 had suffered a liability-related loss of US$5mn or more over the previous five..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Esettle first result
Judicium has achieved the first online settlement of an insurance claim, between Diamond (part of Admiral Insurance Services) and law firm Portner & Jaskel, using Esettle.co.uk.
Using ‘blind bidding’, each side specifies the time..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Russian insurers welcome motor law
The Russian government has passed the first reading of a draft law on mandatory motor liability insurance. The new rule is likely to be implemented in January 2002. The minimum sum insured has been set at R400,000 (US$14,600), of which R240,000 is..
Online Published Date:
01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Lithuania makes TPL insurance compulsory
The bill requiring compulsory third-party motor liability insurance has been passed, for implementation from 1 March 2002. The move could double the country’s nonlife insurance market.
The aim is to increase the 20% of drivers holding..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Latvia ups safety contributions
The Latvian government has increased contributions from motor insurers from 0.6% to 2% of mandatory liability premiums. This is to boost a special road safety fund devoted to the reduction of accident levels. Last year the population of 2.4mn..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Road accident suits target councils in Australia
Insurance company AAMI plans to sue Dalrymple Shire Council in Queensland for negligence in respect of the state of the road surface. Passenger Samantha Lynch died and six other people were injured in a three-car smash on a patch of sand that..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Poor roads lead to accidents
Poor roads lead to accidents – this is the finding of the annual local authority road maintenance survey by the Asphalt Industry Alliance.
It blames 50% of the increase in road accident claims against local authorities on poor road conditions,..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
MIB levy
A survey by Direct Line predicts rising premiums, linked to an ever increasing levy paid to the Motor Insurers’ Bureau (MIB). The levy was £39mn in 1991 and has risen to £265mn this year. It is forecast to near £500mn by 2005...
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Interest on MIB award referred to ECJ
Having been injured by an untraced driver, a Mr Evans eventually received an award of £46,629 by the arbitrator of the Motor Insurers’ Bureau (MIB) – without addition of interest. He appealed that interest was required by the Second..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
New York brokers not ‘professionals’
The New York State court of appeals has ruled that insurance agents and brokers in New York are not ‘professionals’. This can have a dual effect of increasing their exposure to malpractice suits while making allegations harder to..
Online Published Date:
01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Pensioner to refund £172,000
The court of appeal has ruled that 71-year-old Gordon Derby, who received payments in error from insurer Scottish Equitable, must repay the company – including interest.
This comes despite the analysis of Lord Justice Simon Brown, who said:..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Equitable Life may sue
The new leadership of Equitable Life, under pressure from policyholders to sue former directors, advisers and regulators where it appears that GAR-related problems have been caused through negligence, has appointed City law firm Herbert Smith to..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Action against Bank of England may proceed
The decision of the House of Lords (see Case update
) will allow the liquidator of the Bank of Credit & Commerce International (BCCI), Deloitte & Touche, to bring the Bank of England into court for the first time in its 300-year..
Online Published Date:
01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Agency case referred to ECJ
The court of appeal (see Case update
) has referred the case of Allonby v Accrington & Rossendale College
to the European Court of Justice (ECJ). A finding for Allonby would have significant impact on temporary agency workers.
Debra Allonby, a..
Online Published Date:
01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Website for whistleblowers
Forensic Accounting has set up a website to assist those wanting to report crime but fearful of reprisals. The site operates free of charge. Participating companies are given a password to circulate among their employees. Details of allegations (but..
Online Published Date:
01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Pregnancy dismissals
A report prepared by the National Association of Citizens Advice Bureaux (CAB), entitled Birth Rights
, suggests that each year tens of thousands of pregnant women are illegally sacked, are threatened with dismissal, have pay stopped or are..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Employee settlement agreements
‘Asking employees to sign a settlement agreement does not preclude them from coming back for more money,’ writes Jean Eaglesham in the Financial Times
of 12 March 2001 in a useful overview of a new situation.
Detailed comment is made on..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Safety abroad
A study by independent thinktank the Foreign Policy Centre (‘The Kidnapping Business’) concludes that while many companies take the safety of their employees seriously they may fail to take appropriate measures for those working outside..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Mont Blanc tunnel fire
The inquiry looking into the cause of the Mont Blanc tunnel fire two years ago, which led to 39 deaths, is reported to suspect smoking as the immediate cause. It appears a cigar butt was sucked into the air filter of a lorry, setting it on fire...
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Rail inquiry
The report of the public inquiry headed by Lord Cullen and Prof John Uff QC, into the Paddington and Southall rail crashes, highlighted weaknesses of the train protection warning system (TPWS) while concluding that the present phase, planned for..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Billion-dollar Bikini
The Nuclear Claims Tribunal has ordered payment of US$1bn to people of Bikini Atoll in the Marshall Islands in respect of ‘damage, loss and hardship’ suffered as a result of 67 nuclear atmospheric tests in the 1940s and 1950s. But the US..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Space tourism
American space tourist Dennis Tito paid US$20mn to the Russian Space Agency for a trip to Mir, rescheduled to the new International Space Station. NASA and other non-Russian partners raised a number of objections, including the lack of liability..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Mir landing celebrated
The safe return of space station Mir into unpopulated parts of the Pacific Ocean as intended is cause for celebration – not only for all those astronauts of many countries who pushed back the frontiers of space living in the historic vessel,..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Little Rock award excludes sexual relationship
Nancy Chu, a survivor of the American Airlines flight 1420 crash at Little Rock in 1999, sought damages, including punitive damages for the anguish suffered from a sexual relationship with an emergency team member. She claimed American was negligent..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Defibrillators on US planes
..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Concorde offer
Air France’s insurers are reported as offering more than £100mn to the families of the 113 victims of last year’s Concorde crash. Lead insurer La Réunion Aérienne said the offer was ‘of a final nature’ and is..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Marchioness reports
Some 12 years after the Thames dredger Bowbelle
collided with and sunk the Marchioness
, with the loss of 51 lives, the long-awaited report has been published and deputy prime minister John Prescott has apologised to the victims’ families for..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Vatican radio climb-down
Following Italian government threats to close down the Vatican City’s worldwide broadcasting station, heavily exceeding permitted levels of elettrosmog
, the Vatican has cut back broadcasts sharply as a compromise while a solution is..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Inco contamination suit
Residents of the small Canadian town of Port Colborne near Niagara Falls have launched a C$750mn suit against Inco and the Ontario provincial authorities, seeking speedy action to halt years of contamination and health risk to residents.
The class..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
‘Two bonfire nights’
Reminiscent of the politician who publicly fed a burger to his daughter in an attempt to ‘tame’ fears of BSE, UK defence secretary Geoff Hoon has quoted an unnamed environmental agency as comparing the mass burning of foot-and-mouth..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
US$18mn for youth hurt by gun
A suit filed in Philadelphia against Daisy Manufacturing and Kmart Corporation has led to a US$18mn settlement.
It was claimed the pellet gun was defective in appearing to be empty when loaded, thus leading to accidental wounding of a teenager by a..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Columbine settlement
Families of the 13 dead and injured victims of the 1999 Columbine High School shooting will share a US$2.6mn settlement from the parents of the two killers and men who sold them a gun.
The parents had been sued for negligence in allowing the..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Fear of asbestos-related disease
A £10,000 settlement with retired docker Ronald Lyons is the first UK payment for fear of contracting asbestos-related disease. Having worked in seriously polluted conditions in Southampton docks for more than 30 years, two of his own brothers..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Fairchild commentary
The outcome of the appeal of Fairchild v Glenhaven Funeral Services Ltd, Waddington plc and Leeds City Council
will be met with interest (see LRI
128, March 2001) but, whatever that may be, it is not likely to impinge strongly on the majority of..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Chester Street: PwC hopes to review
PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), administering Chester Street (carrying former Iron Trades liabilities), has stated that the proposed 5% asbestos scheme of arrangement payoff is a ‘conservative’ estimate, which it hopes to review in six..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
ABB sets reserves for acquired liabilities
Swiss-Swedish engineering group ABB has set aside a US$430mn reserve to cover mounting asbestos claims, inherited with acquisition of Combustion Engineering in 1990. Although Combustion was sold on to Alstom in 1999, ABB retained the asbestos..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Tobacco update
Empire Blue Cross Blue Shield
, New York’s largest health insurer, is suing Big Tobacco for US$800mn.
Based on estimates of treatment payments to policyholders with lung cancer, emphysema and other smoking-related diseases, the insurer alleges..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
BSE, CJD and OPs
Queniborough inquiry into cluster of five vCJD deaths
of people who lived in the Leicestershire village in the 1980s found all had eaten beef from two butchers with small abattoirs (now long closed down) where brains were removed using the same..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Bioengineering exposure
Commenting on the taco shell recall, a farmers’ suit alleging crop contamination (Mulholland v Aventis
, see LRI
128, March 2001) and allergy-alleging personal injury suits, XLRe, in its first Liability Bulletin
of the year, gives timely..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Toxic homes
Two separate studies in Australia and the UK have found high levels of toxic chemicals leaking from the furniture, floors and paintwork of new-built houses. While toxicity may cause headaches, it is not thought to present a serious health problem..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Lead paint remediation case to proceed
The remediation claims against eight former lead paint manufacturers and a trade association have been given the go-ahead by Rhode Island superior court judge Michael Silverstein. Rhode Island state attorney-general Sheldon Whitehouse described the..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Explorer win for Ford
A Texas jury found nothing inherently wrong with the Ford Explorer, despite allegations that design defects may have played a role in tyre failures and accidents involving the world’s top-selling SUV.
The Hunt County jury considered a case..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
‘Beaten on price’
We have all seen offers along the lines of that displayed by Link Stores of Harrow: ‘We won’t be beaten on price. If you find exactly the same package cheaper in a local store within seven days we will refund the difference.’..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
‘Aiding’ allegation to be heard
A complexity of dismissals and appeals reached the House of Lords. Student members of a university (paid officials of the student union) were expelled from the university (on apparently nonracial grounds) and thus also lost their union posts.
The..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Helpfulness not constituting unlawful ‘aid’
Officers carrying out the discriminatory decision of a local authority did not carry liability for aiding the commission of an offence under the Race Relations Act.
In this case, when a council was told a venue was being booked for a gipsy wedding..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Sex discrimination after end of employment
It was held that an applicant cannot bring a claim under section 6(2) of the Sex Discrimination Act for discrimination that took place after employment had ended, except for a claim of victimisation (under section 4 of the act).
Relaxion Group plc v..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Justification of sex bias?
As part of larger issues (see Employment affairs
) the court held that where a tribunal identifies a sex discriminatory condition imposed by an employer, the tribunal must be able to demonstrate objective weighing of any justification for the..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Employer liable for employee’s assault
A ticket collector who was ignored as he asked to see a passenger’s ticket barged past the passenger so as to make him stop. The ticket was produced, viewed and returned to the passenger, who walked away. The ticket collector then grabbed him,..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
In execution of duty
A police officer was required to undergo internal disciplinary investigation and, as a result, alleged he suffered psychiatric injury leading to medical retirement. It was held that, if the injury arose from the investigation, this was not an injury..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Employment status
An employment agency, Melville Craig, contracted with Motorola to supply temporary workers, the claimant applied for work direct to Motorola but the recruitment process was carried out by the agency. He was assigned to work at a Motorola site,..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Test of employment relationship
The paramount test of deemed, if temporary, employment was that of control. In this case the claimant had control of the way drivers operated their vehicles, therefore they could properly be regarded as temporary deemed servants of the..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Unfair manner of dismissal
Appeal for damages for unfair dismissal was rejected by the House of Lords, in that it would be an improper exercise of judicial function for the courts to construct a common law remedy when a statutory scheme providing compensation for unfair..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Justification of discriminatory redundancy
Where redundancy policy conditions could be met by all male, but only 78% of female, employees (in this case teachers), the employer must be able to justify the policy itself, not merely the rule required to meet economic circumstances. In this case..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
‘Full and final settlement’
After accepting a sum of money ‘in full and final settlement of any claims you may have against the company arising out of your employment or its termination’, the claimant sought to bring a claim of unfair dismissal and breach of..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Failed sterilisation leading to birth of disabled child
An appeal against an original decision that damages could only be awarded for the special needs and care of the child was dismissed. Compensation is believed to be in the region of £100,000.
Parkinson v St James & Seacroft University..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Liability for defective blood products
Under article 6 of the Product Liability Directive, where the existence of a defect was known – or should have been known through accessible information – a producer could not rely on the defence under article 7(e). In determining the..
Online Published Date:
01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Bank of England may be sued
An action by depositors who had lost money on the collapse of the Bank of Credit & Commerce, alleging misfeance in public office of the Bank of England through supervisory failure, could not be said to have no real prospect of success and would..
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01 May 2001
Appeared in issue:
130 - 01 May 2001
Admissibility of expert evidence
In the raking over of the Nick Leeson affair, defendant auditors produced expert evidence to support their defence of lack of causation and contributory negligence; this focused on whether Barings officers should have been aware of the situation,..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
JSB Guidelines and realistic damages
The role of the Judicial Studies Board (JSB) Guidelines on damages for personal injuries were clarified by the court of appeal; circumstances may indicate a ‘broad brush’ approach rather than ‘slavish’ adherence.
In this case..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
No extension where facts available
Where a claimant, had he investigated with due diligence, would have been in possession of all facts relevant to his action, he was not entitled to suspension of the period of limitation by reason of the defendant’s attempts at deliberate..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Strength and use of guidelines
Although not ‘tramlines’, rules laid down by the House of Lords were intended to be followed by lower courts. This is in relation to assessment of damages and application of multiplier.
Barry v Ablerex • court of appeal
•..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
When a ‘hopeless appeal’ should go ahead
Even where an appeal appeared hopeless and bound to fail, it was not appropriate for the court of appeal to set aside permission to appeal where the area of law in question was one of considerable controversy. In this case the issue was a claim of..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Matrimonial home, enforcement against wife
In another case, where a wife had agreed to the use of the matrimonial home as security against a bank loan – allegedly as a result of her husband’s misrepresentations and undue influence – the question was whether the bank was..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Fraud taints whole policy
Where part of a claim (in this case for fire damage to a house) is found to be fraudulent, the insurer is relieved of liability to pay any part thereof. This upholds the principle laid down by the court of appeal in Galloway v GRE (UK) Ltd
..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Notice a condition precedent
After proceedings served and conducted normally for two years, arising from a serious motor accident that occurred four years earlier, insurers took the point that no notice had been served on them within seven days as required under section 152(1)..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Buyout by primary insurer does not relieve excess insurers of liability
An insured paid out substantial legal costs in defending suits in the Benzodiazepine litigation; no damages were paid to third parties. When the insured sought to recover costs, a primary insurer exercised its right to buy out the policy by paying..
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01 May 2001
Appeared in issue:
130 - 01 May 2001
A$350,000 cap on medical negligence damages
Proposed legislation in New South Wales will cap general damages payouts for medical negligence at A$350,000. Recovery for past and future economic loss will be restricted to a maximum of A$2,600 per week. There will also be restrictions on the cost..
Online Published Date:
01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
US$56mn ‘fen-phen’ award
A Texas jury has awarded US$56.5mn (of which US$45mn punitive) to Gloria Lopez for heart damage she claimed was caused by use of the diet drug ‘fen-phen’. American Home Products will appeal. Most claims are covered by a 50,000-person..
Online Published Date:
01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Leukaemia clusters
A study by Oxford cancer epidemiologist Prof Leo Kinlen supports earlier hypotheses that clusters of childhood leukaemia may be triggered by an infectious agent.
Earlier investigations into leukaemia clusters around Sellafield suggested infection of..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Blood a consumer product
The decision in favour of claimants infected with hepatitis C through the administration of blood transfusions in the late 1980s and early 1990s is significant on several levels.
The National Blood Authority and Velindre NHS Trust (in Wales) will..
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01 May 2001
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130 - 01 May 2001
Care funds as ‘income’
Redefinition as ‘income’ of awards to accident victims to cover their lifelong care, initially by a social security commissioner in 1999, led to a test case against Charles Beattie.
Rendered quadriplegic by a car accident at the age of..
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01 May 2001
Appeared in issue:
130 - 01 May 2001
Coffee in lap
In another spilt coffee incident, the scalding fluid was upset into the lap of a Northwest Airlines passenger, causing second-degree burns. The pain was exacerbated by a lack of help – the passenger was told to get cold water from the toilet..
Online Published Date:
01 May 2001
Appeared in issue:
130 - 01 May 2001
Reinstated teacher to sue
Marjorie Evans, the headteacher who was cleared on appeal of slapping a pupil, then was kept out of school for a further three months and faced a further disciplinary hearing by her education authority, is to pursue a claim for compensation against..
Online Published Date:
01 May 2001
Appeared in issue:
130 - 01 May 2001
War stress
Claims from at least 350 former soldiers, targeting the Ministry of Defence for failure to prepare them or adequately treat their posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) suffered in various military actions and wars, have been combined into two group..
Online Published Date:
01 May 2001
Appeared in issue:
130 - 01 May 2001
Group action on organ retention
The National Committee Relating to Organ Retention is seeking a group litigation order for action launched on behalf of families whose relatives’ organs were retained without consent. The lead action relates to a patient treated at Leeds..
Online Published Date:
01 May 2001
Appeared in issue:
130 - 01 May 2001
Law Society v KPMG to go ahead
Refusal of leave to appeal by the House of Lords will allow a Law Society negligence claim against accountancy giant KPMG. The case hinges on allegedly negligent audit of the accounts of Sussex law firm Durnford Ford with failure to spot anomalies..
Online Published Date:
01 May 2001
Appeared in issue:
130 - 01 May 2001
Who will help Basil?
Dramatic pictures of slaughtered cattle (destined for the abattoir and dinner plate anyway) are more ‘sexy’ than the beleaguered small business people of the tourist industry – most lack the iconic appeal of their ultimate..
Online Published Date:
01 May 2001
Appeared in issue:
130 - 01 May 2001