LEXLAW Solicitors & Barristers
The London Court of International Arbitration have recently updated their guidance for Arbiters to account for remote Arbitrations. The changes to their rules will come into effect on 1 October 2020 and will only effect arbitrations that commence after this date.
This decision confirms the rule against reflective loss as an important tool to protect the payment waterfall for unsecured creditors in the event of a company’s insolvency.
The FCA’s test case is likely to be the quickest route to clarity on whether losses caused by Covid-19 are covered by Business Interruption insurance. Most SME insurance policies are focused on property damage (and only have basic cover for BI as a consequence of property damage) so, at least in the majority of cases, insurers are not obliged to pay out in relation to the coronavirus pandemic. This case is focused on the remainder of policies that could be argued to include cover.
Given the complexity of business interruption claims and the legal uncertainty surrounding their enforcement (the FCA have issued a test case recently in the High Court), it is advisable that you seek expert legal advice early in order to prepare your Business Interruption Insurance claim.
The High Court judgment in Lexlaw Ltd v Zuberi [2020] EWHC 1855 (Ch) (10 July 2020) provides much needed certainty over payment provisions on early termination in DBAs. The clarity given by HHJ Parfitt in relation to the DBA Regulations will widen access to justice as impecunious litigants will be more able to pursue civil and commercial litigation via damages-based agreements.
Piepenbrock v Associated Newspapers [2020] EWHC 1708 is another case concerning where and when service may occur on the Defendant’s solicitors. The facts are similar to the Court of Appeal case of Woodward v Phoenix Healthcare Distribution (which Lexlaw were instructed on). The Claimant, a litigant in person, purportedly served the Claim Form on the last day of its four month validity period via email on the Defendants’ solicitors, who had not confirmed whether they were authorised to accept service. This amounted to a failure to effect service of the Claim Form. Applications to the Court to validate service were refused and the claim dismissed highlighting the dangers of ‘DIY litigation’ and the importance of instructing a specialist litigation team.
Given the complexity of business interruption claims and the legal uncertainty surrounding their enforcement (the FCA have issued a test case recently in the High Court), it is is essential that you seek expert legal advice early in order to prepare your Business Interruption Insurance claim.
On 9 June 2020, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) filed its Claim Form and Particulars of Claim in its High Court test case on business interruption (BI) insurance policies. The court action is aimed at providing clarity and certainty for everyone involved in Business Interruption insurance disputes, policyholder and insurer alike.
Conversations can easily be recorded by everyday devices, but can those recordings be deployed in litigation before the UK courts?
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