The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has announced plans to further increase court fees. The proposal could lead to fees doubling to £20,000 for some professional indemnity court cases and comes on top of fee increases imposed by the government in…read more
New alternative dispute resolution rules coming into force
New Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) regulations come into force on 1 October 2015. The rules oblige all professional firms providing services to consumers to provide their clients with the name of an ADR provider and inform them whether they use…read more
Cyber insurance to become a business essential within the next decade
Cyber insurance should viewed as ‘essential’ by UK businesses by 2025 says the Association of British Insurers (ABI). Online breaches can cost millions and would threaten the viability of many businesses according to Huw Evans, Director General at the ABI…read more
Updated Protocol Aims to Settle Claims Without Resorting to Court Action
Court proceedings should be the last resort to settle professional negligence claims according to the Ministry of Justice (MoJ). An updated Professional Negligence Pre-Action Protocol, which came into force on 6 April 2015, encourages parties to a dispute to use…read more
Courts challenge unreasonable costs
The Courts have shown that they will restrict the budget in cases where unreasonable costs have been incurred. This is good news for professional firms and their insurers defending professional indemnity claims who may not have to face excessive demands…read more
“Ebay Justice” proposed by the Civil Justice Council
Council is advocating that HM Courts and Tribunals Service introduces a new internet-based Online Dispute Resolution service (ODR) for civil claims under £25,000. The new ‘HM Online Court’ would aim to achieve early resolution of disputes through ‘facilitators’. If this…read more
New Court fees to increase insurance costs
The new fees are based on 5{0a6a65c996ed4169444354e707b897cdb00dbefc1d0429e8febb9bf11027ba53} of the claim’s value for all claims over £10,000 and could lead to an increase in costs by more than 600{0a6a65c996ed4169444354e707b897cdb00dbefc1d0429e8febb9bf11027ba53} for high value cases. Law firm Bond Dickinson believes that the increased…read more
Insurance Bill: breach of irrelevant policy conditions should not invalidate cover
Policyholders will be able to challenge attempts by insurers to refuse to pay losses just because the policyholder had breached an irrelevant policy term under plans put forward by the Law Commissions.It is hoped that the new clause will be…read more
Cyber liability: the unknown quantity
A year on from Brunel’s initial anticipation of strong growth in the demand for Cyber Liability Insurance, there has been a steep rise in the number of cyber attacks and data losses around the world. As the global economy begins…read more
Terms of business protect banks from liability for negligence
Banks accused of negligent advice and breach of their duty of care in making a loan involving interest rate swaps to a customer have been told they have no case to answer. The case highlights how a ‘basis clause’ in…read more