Insurance Law

High Court rejects challenge from claimant lawyers over personal injury fee cuts

By Gerard Starkey | March 4, 2013

The High Court has thrown out a challenge to the new fixed costs structure for personal injury claims, after the Government pushed through reforms which are set to have a significant impact on the earnings of law firms handling employers' liability, public liability and motor claims. The Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL) and the Motor Accident Solicitors Society (MASS) contested a decision made by the Ministry of Justice to significantly reduce the fees recoverable by lawyers for cases managed through the road traffic accident (RTA) Portal, the online system via which low value personal injury claims are processed.

1 minute read

Bond Pearce adds partner duo with DAC Beachcroft and Kennedys hires

By Gerard Starkey | February 21, 2013

Bond Pearce has continued its recruitment drive ahead of its merger with Dickinson Dees, taking on planning partner Kevin Gibbs and insurance partner Jane Williams from DAC Beachcroft and Kennedys respectively. Gibbs, who is top ranked by Chambers and Partners for planning work, recently advised the Co-operative Group on planning aspects of an £800m regeneration scheme in Manchester. He is leaving DAC Beachcroft after less than two years at the firm following his arrival from Osborne Clarke in May 2011.

1 minute read

Hill Dicks takes defendant insurance team from DLA as firm splits practice

By Gerard Starkey | January 28, 2013

Hill Dickinson has sealed a deal to take on DLA Piper's defendant insurance practice in Sheffield and Manchester, after DLA decided to divide up the 50-strong business. The deal will see approximately 30 staff - including three partners - transfer to Hill Dickinson's offices in the two cities by the end of February, with the agreement also including the handover of its client book, comprising around 20 clients.

1 minute read

DWF to merge with professional indemnity firm Fishburns

By Alex Newman | January 18, 2013

DWF is to merge with professional indemnity law firm Fishburns on 1 February this year, with the Fishburns business to be re-branded as DWF Fishburns. The merger will see 210 staff at Fishburns, including around 24 partners and consultants, join DWF's 1,780 staff in the UK.

1 minute read

A&O and Debevoise head up $1.7bn ING Malaysia insurance sale

By Elizabeth Broomhall in Hong Kong | January 2, 2013

Allen & Overy (A&O) and Debevoise & Plimpton have advised on the sale of ING's Malaysian insurance operations to AIA Group. The deal, which completed last month after being announced in October, has seen AIA purchase the Dutch financial services company's life insurance and employee benefits businesses in Malaysia, as well as taking a 60% stake in ING's takaful Islamic insurance business, for a reported value of around $1.7bn (£1bn).

1 minute read

Keoghs to launch in Manchester following Clydes fraud team hires

By Gerard Starkey | December 18, 2012

Keoghs, which took on the Clydes team led by Manchester fraud head Damian Ward in November, has taken temporary space in the city centre and is now looking for a permanent base.

1 minute read

Clydes to form joint venture with Singapore ally in local law push

By Elizabeth Broomhall in Hong Kong | December 5, 2012

Clyde & Co is set to form a joint law venture (JLV) with Singapore alliance firm Clasis LLC early next year, as it moves to increase the range of legal services it can offer in the region. The firm has submitted an application to the Singaporean authorities to form a JLV with Clasis in the first quarter of 2013, after establishing an exclusive alliance with the firm last year.

1 minute read

Hill Dickinson takes up bigger London office space as mooted partner lock-in abandoned

By Gerard Starkey | November 29, 2012

Hill Dickinson is ramping up its London presence after securing a deal to move into new offices without the need to subject partners to a previously mooted lock-in. The firm is expecting to make the move to new premises at Broadgate Tower – which at 32,000 sq ft marks an almost 30% increase on the firm's current 25,000 sq ft Irongate House base – by the end of the financial year.

1 minute read

News Group ordered to pay Coulson's legal costs - implications of the judgment

By Legal Week | November 29, 2012

Yesterday's judgment by the Court of Appeal in Coulson v News Group Newspapers (NGN) is good news for those who have a legal expenses insurance policy which they wish to use to defend themselves against an allegation that they have committed a criminal offence. Typically, such policies are written for the protection of directors and officers of companies and are sold by insurers on the basis that they provide 'peace of mind' in the event that any allegation of malpractice is made against them in connection with their duties. Whatever the anxiety caused by such an allegation, the insured can at least rest assured that their lawyers' bills in relation to rebutting it will be paid on their behalf. Judging by the way in which they are widely marketed in magazines such as The Economist, such policies must be good business for insurers.

1 minute read

RPC takes on insurance GC as partner

By Gerard Starkey | November 23, 2012

Reynolds Porter Chamberlain (RPC) has recruited corporate insurance specialist Charlotte Taggart as partner from independent insurance broker Lockton Companies International. Taggart, who spent four years at Lockton as international general counsel, will join RPC on 1 January, bringing the number of corporate insurance lawyers at the firm to 35.

1 minute read

Law.com

Appeals Court Allows Botanical Garden to Go Forward With COVID-19 Business Interruption Suit

By Jason Grant | June 17, 2022

The Appellate Division, First Department court also allowed the Botanical Garden to proceed with a related breach of the implied covenant of good faith claim against the insurance company.

4 minute read

Daily Business Review

The Problem With Florida's Auto Insurance Coverage Laws

By John Willis | June 16, 2022

Our state's automobile insurance coverage laws do little to protect Florida drivers on the road, so we must protect ourselves in advance.

5 minute read

Corporate Counsel

Principal Financial Recruits New York Life General Counsel Natalie Lamarque

By Phillip Bantz | June 15, 2022

"Her unique experience will provide a welcomed perspective to Principal—providing diverse viewpoints, creative problem solving, and passion for the law," said Principal chairman, president and CEO Dan Houston.

2 minute read

New York Law Journal

Representations and Warranties Insurance and Public Company Transactions

By Howard B. Epstein and Theodore A. Keyes | June 15, 2022

RWI has become increasingly available for public company transactions to mitigate risk associated with a public target's breach of representations and warranties. For this edition of their Corporate Insurance Law column, Howard B. Epstein and Theodore A. Keyes collaborated with colleagues at McGill and Partners to discuss the use of RWI in public company deals.

9 minute read

Daily Business Review

These Attorneys Want You to Be Aware of a Tactic Insurers May Use to Reduce Medical Evidence

By Jasmine Floyd | June 13, 2022

"Plaintiffs attorneys should be aware that this is something carriers might be doing or might start doing. Defendant attorneys would probably want to be aware as well, given that they may be put in the position of defending the tactic before the court in the future," attorney Michael Hersh said.

7 minute read

New York Law Journal

2nd Circuit Panels Reverses Brooklyn ERISA Ruling, Finding Insurer Waited Too Long to Provide Final Decision

By Jane Wester | June 9, 2022

The judges revived a case that had been dismissed by an Eastern District of New York judge on the grounds that the plaintiff did not exhaust his administrative remedies. But the 2nd Circuit faulted Hartford Insurance's decision as not final.

3 minute read

The Legal Intelligencer

As Regulators Step Up, Faegre Drinker Doubles Down on AI

By Justin Henry | June 6, 2022

Lawyers in the firm's month-old artificial intelligence practice group and clients alike are looking for answers to the question, "Are we perpetuating societal biases by the data that we use?"

10 minute read

Daily Report Online

'No Physical Loss': Restaurants' COVID-19 Business Losses Not Covered by Their Property Insurance

By Katheryn Hayes Tucker | June 6, 2022

Circuit Judge Britt Grant's opinion underscored the dire record of business owners seeking coverage for losses attributed to COVID-19. She said policies weren't written with foresight of a once-in-a-century pandemic.

5 minute read

New York Law Journal

MGA or Not an MGA … That Is the Question

By Jonathan Goeringer, Stephanie Pierce and JillAllison Opell | June 3, 2022

MGAs can provide an attractive option for insurers exploring a new or niche market, allowing those insurers to enter such market without making the typical expenditures required to do so.

9 minute read

Daily Business Review

Florida Insurance Changes Hit with Second Lawsuit

By Jim Saunders | June 3, 2022

Insurers in recent years have blamed roof-damage claims for playing a key role in driving up costs. Lawmakers made a change related to the Florida Building Code that could lead to insurers repairing more roofs instead of needing to replace them, according to a Senate staff analysis.

4 minute read