South Africa and global insurance, financial institutions, banking and general law know–how
A Missouri Federal Court in September 2024 dismissed the extraordinary defence by the insurer that a claim for a severe esophageal injury suffered by an 18-month old child who drank a breath freshener was a loss falling within the total pollution exclusion.
The policy covered all bodily injury that arises out of the covered products…
In September 2024 a Louisiana court in the US held that a claim for damages by an insured against the independent loss adjusting company employed by the insurer should be dismissed. An insurance adjuster generally does not owe a legal duty to an insurance claimant. Under Louisiana law, insurance adjusters owe a duty to claimants…
A February 2024 UK judgment dealt with the practices of the London insurance market and their Market Reform Contract (MRC) in relation to the role of a “slip” in the form of a slip policy or reinsurance slip. The practices may not be familiar to everyone. The question that always arises is what happens if…
A Delaware court found itself having to hear lengthy evidence to determine the contracting parties’ intentions regarding what the court found to be an ambiguous ‘commercially reasonable efforts’ clause in an acquisition agreement. The clause was outward-facing (objective) which needed evidence of the hypothetical standards and practices of companies in the pharmaceutical industry.
One pharmaceutical…
A Connecticut court found that the definition of “loss” in a policy which said that “loss does not include matters uninsurable under the law pursuant to which the policy is construed” was an exclusion even though it was found in a definition. The court reaffirmed that an exclusion can be anywhere in a policy because…
A US court found that cover for loss caused by physical harm, bodily injury or assault between “family members” included assault by the ex-husband because the divorced couple shared the custody of their child with the parenting plan that called for joint decision-making.
The divorce order required the husband to sell their property or refinance…
The respondent in this application brought by the Prudential Authority was sequestrated for unpaid amounts exceeding R2 million arising from her having conducted the business of a bank, namely acting as a conduit for money for a massive pyramid scheme. Section 11(1) of the Banks Act prohibits any person from conducting the business of a bank unless…
A 2005 Australian case has some useful observation about the use of dictionaries in contractual interpretation:
“Dictionaries are not a substitute for the determination of the interpretation and then construction of statutes and other documents.”
In House of Peace Pty Ltd v Bankstown City Council [2000] the court observed, in the context of the use…
A fire on a power pole approximately fifty five metres from the appellant’s premises caused the upper arm on the burnt pole to fail, the wiring on that upper arm came into contact with wiring on the lower arm thus causing a high voltage/low voltage intermix. The intermix caused a power surge to the premises…
In July 2024 an industry guidance issued by the New York Department of Financial Services contains useful guidance (although not always directly related to our own Constitutional values) regarding the use of Artificial Intelligence Systems that External Consumer Data and Information Sources in insurance underwriting and pricing. The guidance arises from its commitment to innovation…
