Case Comment: Halliburton Company v Chubb Bermuda Insurance Ltd (Formerly known as Ace Bermuda Insurance Ltd) [2020] UKSC 48 – UKSC Blog

‘In this post, Neil Newing and Olivia Flasch who both practice at Signature Litigation, comment upon the decision handed down by the UK Supreme Court in the matter of Halliburton Company v Chubb Bermuda Insurance Ltd (Formerly known as Ace Bermuda Insurance Ltd) [2020] UKSC 48. They ask: is the decision a missed opportunity?’

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UKSC Blog, 2nd February 2021

Source: ukscblog.com

Solicitor fined for failing to disclose counsel’s opinions to ATE insurer – Litigation Futures

‘An experienced solicitor who failed to disclose two counsel’s opinions on a case to an after-the-event (ATE) insurer, one of them assessing chances of success at less than 50%, has been fined £8,000.’

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Litigation Futures, 27th January 2021

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Latest Instalment in Insurers’ Challenge to CRU Provisions – Ropewalk Chambers

‘In R (on the application of (1) Aviva Insurance Ltd (2) Swiss Reinsurance Company Ltd) v The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions [2021] EWHC 30 (Admin), Henshaw J dealt with certain consequential matters arising from his earlier judgment dated 20 November 2020 which arose from the Claimants’ challenge to the onerous consequences of the Compensation Recovery Unit scheme, particularly in cases involving long-tail asbestos-related diseases.’

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Ropewalk Chambers, 18th January 2021

Source: www.ropewalk.co.uk

FCA v Arch Insurance (UK) Ltd and others – St John’s Chambers

‘This short note summarises the key parts of the Supreme Court’s decision in this important test case, by which it allowed most of the FCA’s appeals against the decision of the Divisional Court and found largely in favour of policyholders.’

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St John's Chambers, 21st January 2021

Source: www.stjohnschambers.co.uk

New Judgment: Financial Conduct Authority v Arch Insurance (UK) Ltd and Ors [2021] UKSC 1 – UKSC Blog

‘In March 2020, the UK Government began to take a series of measures to combat the transmission of COVID-19. The present appeals considered the impact of these actions and measures on 28 clauses in the 21 lead policies written by the Appellant Insurers.’

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UKSC Blog, 15th January 2021

Source: ukscblog.com

LEI does not have to fund appeals during “unmeritorious claims” – Litigation Futures

‘Legal expenses insurance (LEI) does not have to fund interlocutory appeals that are likely to succeed as part of claims that overall are predicted to fail, the High Court has ruled.’

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Litigation Futures, 5th January 2021

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

No business interruption decision from Supreme Court until next year – Law Society’s Gazette

‘Judgment in an urgent test case to determine whether businesses hit by Covid-19 will receive insurance pay-outs will not be handed down by the Supreme Court until January at the earliest. Five Supreme Court justices heard a case between the Financial Conduct Authority and six insurance companies in November. The dispute concerned business interruption insurance (BII) and the court was asked to rule on provisions in insurance policies relating to disease clauses, prevention of access clauses and hybrid clauses.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 15th December 2020

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Claimants in breast implant case buy cause of action to sue defendant’s lawyers – Litigation Futures

‘A leading defendant law firm and a QC have failed to strike out a professional negligence action brought after the claimants in a case they defended acquired their insolvent client’s cause of action.’

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Litigation Futures, 16th December 2020

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

3,000 law firms “could be forced to close or merge” – Legal Futures

Posted December 8th, 2020 in conveyancing, coronavirus, insurance, law firms, legal services, loans, mergers, news by sally

‘As many as 3,000 law firms could be forced to close or merge over the next few years after the conveyancing bubble bursts and the recession really kicks in, a leading law firm consultant has warned.’

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Legal Futures, 8th December 2020

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

The law applicable to an arbitration agreement: Part 1 of our analysis of Enka v OOO Insurance – Hardwicke Chambers

‘In the eagerly awaited judgment in Enka Insaat Ve Sanayi AS v OOO Insurance Company Chubb [2020] UKSC 38, the Supreme Court finally settled an important issue in the law of arbitration that has long divided the authorities and commentary: in the absence of a choice by the parties, where the law applicable to the main contract differs from that of the seat, it is the law of the seat that governs the validity and scope of the arbitration agreement. Our Overview on the decision sets out the key holdings; Part I (below) of our commentary on the decision examines the reasoning of the Majority in greater depth.’

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Hardwicke Chambers, 2nd December 2020

Source: hardwicke.co.uk

International community “will see Halliburton ruling as protecting Bar” – Litigation Futures

‘The Supreme Court’s decision not to remove a QC from an arbitration will reinforce the international perception that members of the English Bar are being protected, a solicitor has claimed.’

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Litigation Futures, 30th November 2020

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

New Judgment: Halliburton Company v Chubb Bermuda Insurance Ltd (Formerly known as Ace Bermuda Insurance Ltd) [2020] UKSC 48 – UKSC Blog

‘The Supreme Court has unanimously dismissed this appeal addressing when an arbitrator should make disclosure of circumstances which may give rise to justifiable doubts as to his impartiality.’

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UKSC Blog, 27th November 2020

Source: ukscblog.com

Successful insurers’ A1P1 claim concerning benefits reimbursement in asbestos claims – UK Human Rights Blog

‘R (o.t.a of Aviva & Swiss Re) v. Secretary of State for Work and Pensions [2020] EWHC 3118 (Admin). At first sight, a rather abstruse dispute, but the 63 page judgment of Henshaw J gives rise to a host of important and difficult human rights points. But his central conclusion is that a statute which was not challengeable at the time of its enactment became so, because of the subsequent evolution of the law, principally common law, to the detriment of insurers.’

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UK Human Rights Blog, 25th November 2020

Source: ukhumanrightsblog.com

Rashid v Chief Constable of West Yorkshire Police [2020] EWHC 2522 (QB), [2020] All ER (D) 02 (Oct) – Parklane Plowden Chambers

Posted November 19th, 2020 in accidents, evidence, insurance, necessity, news, police, road traffic, wrongful arrest by sally

‘The court held that whereas reasonable grounds for suspecting someone has committed an offence sets a low evidential hurdle, the second requirement for an arrest to be lawful (for the Police to prove that there were reasonable grounds to believe the arrest was “necessary”) sets a comparatively high evidential hurdle and the police could not objectively evidence that the arrest was “necessary” when the GP would have been prepared to voluntarily attend the police station and the reasons given by the Police for the “necessity” of arresting the GP were baseless.’

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Parklane Plowden Chambers, 11th November 2020

Source: www.parklaneplowden.co.uk

Comparethemarket fined £17.9m by competition watchdog – The Guardian

Posted November 19th, 2020 in compensation, contracts, fines, insurance, internet, news by sally

‘The competition watchdog has imposed a £17.9m fine on price comparison site Comparethemarket.com after it found that clauses in its contracts with home insurers broke competition law.’

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The Guardian, 19th November 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

Claimant lawyers urge Lord Chief to step in on whiplash reforms – Legal Futures

‘Claimant personal injury lawyers have turned to the Lord Chief Justice to support an urgent review of the government’s proposed tariff of damages for next April’s whiplash reforms.’

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Legal Futures, 18th November 2020

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

FCA v Arch and Others [2020] EWHC 2448 (Comm): COVID-19 business interruption insurance – 12 King’s Bench Walk

Posted November 17th, 2020 in causation, contracts, coronavirus, financial regulation, indemnities, insurance, news by sally

‘The coronavirus pandemic has led to ongoing widespread business disruption and closures with a second national lockdown commencing this week. As such, certainty over whether business can bring claims under their business interruption (“BI”) insurance policies could not be more important.’

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12 King's Bench Walk, 2nd November 2020

Source: www.12kbw.co.uk

Supreme court case looms as insurers battle firms over Covid cover – The Guardian

‘Eight months since the UK coronavirus lockdown forced the temporary closures of restaurants, bars, shops, hairdressers and other small businesses, thousands who are still awaiting payouts from their insurers to cover lost income will hope a supreme court hearing will result in a ruling that favours about 200,000 policyholders.’

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The Guardian, 16th November 2020

Source: www.theguardian.com

Insurer fails in aggregation argument over partner’s multi-million pound thefts – Legal Futures

‘The High Court has refused to aggregate as one claim various actions a Yorkshire law firm’s indemnity insurer is facing because of a multi-million pound fraud run by one of its partners.’

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Legal Futures, 4th November 2020

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Enka v. Chubb in the Supreme Court: Which Law is it Anyway? – 4 New Square

‘Where the law governing a contract containing an arbitration agreement differs from the law of the nominated “seat” of the arbitration, which law – absent any express choice – governs the arbitration agreement itself? That was the question that the Supreme Court had to grapple with in Enka Insaat Ve Sanayi AS v. OOO Insurance Company Chubb [2020] UKSC 38, in which judgment was handed down on 9 October 2020. George Spalton and Ian McDonald of 4 New Square consider the decision.’

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4 New Square, 14th October 2020

Source: www.4newsquare.com