In a sprawling 163 page opinion issued just last week, the Connecticut Appellate Court addressed, as a matter of first impression, five different issues that will significantly affect the disposition of asbestos, and potentially other, long tail claims in Connecticut. The case, R.T. Vanderbilt Co., Inc. v. Hartford Accident and
Asbestos
New York’s Highest Court Holds All Sums Allocation And Vertical Exhaustion Applied To Excess Insurance Coverage For Asbestos Claims
On May 3, 2016, the Court of Appeals of New York issued its opinion in In re Viking Pump, No. 59, 2016 WL 1735790, and found that “all sums” allocation and vertical exhaustion applied to the insureds’ claims to excess coverage for the asbestos exposure claims filed against them.…
UK: Mesothelioma Bill Becomes Law
Following agreement by both Houses of Parliament, the Mesothelioma Bill received Royal Assent on 30 January 2014, becoming the Mesothelioma Act 2014 (the Act). …
UK Government and the FSA propose changes to the treatment of mesothelioma victims who cannot trace their employers or EL insurers
On 25 July 2012 two papers were published which may affect the way in which EL insurers deal with mesothelioma victims who cannot trace their employers or EL insurers. …
UK: Asbestos: Third Parties (Rights against Insurers) Act 2010 Delayed
A Ministry of Justice Report released in March 2012 has confirmed that the implementation of the Third Parties (Rights against Insurers) Act 2010 (the “Act“) is to be delayed until 2013. …
UK: Light on the Trigger – Supreme Court Decision in the EL Trigger Litigation
The Supreme Court has handed down its decision in the Employers’ Liability Insurance Trigger Litigation (see judgment here). The ruling has provided clear rules governing how EL policies should respond to mesothelioma claims. …
Employers’ Liability Insurance “Trigger” Litigation – Supreme Court decision expected imminently
The Supreme Court’s decision in the Employers’ Liability (EL) Insurance “Trigger” Litigation is expected imminently. It is not just insurers who eagerly await that decision. …
UK: Commercial Court in London Comments on “Spiking” Mesothelioma Claims
Recent comments by a UK Commercial Court judge indicate that policyholders are entitled to “spike” their entire liability for a mesothelioma claim into any one year of employers’ liability (EL) cover. Spiking potentially arises where the period of EL cover is shorter than the period of negligent exposure to asbestos. …
UK: Mesothelioma – Fairchild Principles of Proof Apply Only to the Need to Prove Causation
In Williams v University of Birmingham [2011] EWCA Civ 1242 the Court of Appeal analysed the correct approach to proving liability in a mesothelioma case. The Court emphasised that the relaxation of normal principles of proof in relation to mesothelioma claims, laid down by the House of Lords in the Fairchild case (Fairchild v Glenhaven Funeral Services Ltd [2002] UKHL 22), apply only to the need to prove causation. …
UK: Supreme Court Decides on Legality of Scottish Pleural Plaques Legislation
The Supreme Court has published its decision in the case of AXA General Insurance Limited and others v The Lord Advocate and Others [2011] UKSC 46 in which AXA and other insurers (the Insurers) appealed against the decision of the Inner House of the Court of Session regarding the legality of the Damages (Asbestos-Related Conditions) (Scotland) Act 2009 (the 2009 Act) (please see our previous blog here for further information on that decision). …