Last month, a California appellate court rejected an insurer's arguments and affirmed a large punitive damages award against the insurer, providing a fresh roadmap for policyholders to obtain such relief when insurers engage in certain bad-faith practices. Mazik v. GEICO General Insurance Company (2019) 35 Cal.App.5th 455 involved a policyholder's claim for the $50,000 limits under his underinsured motorist policy ...
On August 31, 2022, the Cyberspace Administration of China (the "CAC") issued the Application Guidelines for Security Assessment of Cross-border Data Transfer (1st Edition) (the "Application Guidelines"), which specify and implement the provisions on cross-border data transfer security assessments ("security assessments") in the Measures for Security Assessment of Cross-border Data Transfers (the "Assessment Measures") ...
Contents Legal and Enforcement Frameworks Blockchain Market Cryptocurrencies Smart Contracts Data and Privacy Cybersecurity Intellectual Property Trends and Predictions Tips and Traps Legal and Enforcement Framework What general regulatory regimes and issues should blockchain developers consider when building the governance framework for the operation of blockchain/distributed ledger technology protocols? Fintech legislation and guidance notes: The British Virgin Island
You are in charge of finances for a small business and are on vacation at the beach. Suddenly, you remember you have forgotten to pay a company bill. All is not lost, you think. You run to you room, grab a laptop, and bring it down to the Tiki Bar. There, you order a drink and connect to the hotel's wireless system. Then you call up your company's bank's Web page, click the "log-in" button, enter your password, and order a check issued to the creditor ...
As the financial services sector has developed and adopted technology, there has been a significant growth in Deferred Payment Credit, more commonly referred to as ‘Buy Now, Pay Later’ (“BNPL”) by consumers. Demonstrating the scale of growth, news outlets have recently reported that over £10 billion has been lent to consumers by BNPL companies in the last three years ...
A breakdown of the ICO’s recent guidance on how to comply with the UK’s data protection regime when making live marketing calls. The ambiguous lyrics from this popular song have left me confused ...
In May 2021, the total value of cryptocurrency globally surpassed USD $2.5 trillion, and continues its emergence as a new asset class.[1] Governments in Canada and around the world are updating regulatory requirements in response to the new innovations in financial technologies. Historically, there has been regulatory uncertainty surrounding cryptocurrencies in Canada ...
Further guidance for insurers and policyholders on business interruption claims is now available following an award made by Lord Mance in Certain Policyholders v China Taiping Insurance (UK) Co Ltd. Whilst the arbitration award will not be binding on the courts, it will no doubt prove persuasive and represents a victory for insurers, with Lord Mance finding no coverage under the denial of access cause in question ...
As each day that passes while COVID-19 spreads throughout the country, more businesses are closing their doors to protect their employees, customers, vendors, and other people with whom they come into contact. And many of them are wondering whether there is coverage for their business losses during this time. Business interruption or business income coverage is sometimes included in commercial property coverage ...
As each day that passes while COVID-19 spreads throughout the country, more businesses are closing their doors to protect their employees, customers, vendors, and other people with whom they come into contact. And many of them are wondering whether there is coverage for their business losses during this time. Business interruption or business income coverage is sometimes included in commercial property coverage ...
Two schools of thought have emerged on business interruption insurance coverage for coronavirus, either (a) it is a total panacea that will shift the risk of coronavirus revenue losses to insurance carriers or (b) there is no possible coverage for losses caused by coronavirus. As with most things in life and insurance, the truth lies somewhere in between and will depend on the specific policy at issue and the jurisdiction interpreting the policy ...
The Supreme Court has handed down its much anticipated decision relating to the coverage of business interruption insurance claims made following the COVID-19 pandemic. A key question was whether the Supreme Court ruling would finally provide the clarity that the expedited test case sought to achieve for both policyholders and insurers. The good news for all is that the Supreme Court has indeed provided much more clarity in relation to most issues ...
Vikas Shah MBE chats to Adam Wagner on the rule of law. Susanna Reid from ITV’s Good Morning Britain calls him “the barrister who kept the legal receipts”. Put simply, Adam knows more about the Covid regulations which upended our lives from March 2020 onwards than arguably anyone else in the country ...
27.06.2022 In the newest episode of News from Poland—Business & Law, Jakub Barański from Wardyński & Partners’ Dispute Resolution & Arbitration practice discusses arbitration as a solution to the rising number of IT-related disputes. Konrad GrotowskiNote, the link will open in a new window, host of the programme, talks about the situation in Poland for retail, real estate development, and transit of goods from Ukraine ...
I. Intact, compagnie d’assurances v. Théberge & Belley (1985) inc. and l’Union canadienne compagnie d’assurance and EBC inc.1In this case, the Court of Appeal held that an insurer who indemnified its insured pursuant to “contractors’ equipment” coverage cannot exercise its subrogation rights against the subcontractor who committed a fault.FACTSEBC was the general contractor for the construction of a deep water wharf ...
The TCPA and other related regulations over telemarketing and “robocalling” continue to evolve at a quick pace, creating uncertainty and posing challenges for any business that contacts consumers through calling or texting. This past month has seen more important developments in the wake of the Supreme Court opinion in Facebook v. Duguid, which gave us a narrow interpretation of the statutory ATDS definition ...
A dangerous trap for an unwary insured looking for insurance coverage can be a notice provision. To trigger certain liability insurance policies, the insurer may require that a “claim” be both made against an insured and that the insured then report such claim to its insurer during the time the single insurance policy is in effect. This is what is known as a “claims-made-and-reported” policy ...
As COVID-19 cases have continued to spread across the country resulting in government-issued “shelter in place” orders, few industries have felt the impact as swiftly and deeply as the restaurant industry. Indeed, such government orders have required restaurants to shut down all onsite dining, causing a sharp decline in restaurant revenue. According to restaurant ...
On Friday, March 27, 2020, the CARES ACT was signed into law. The Cares Act includes provisions for changing deadlines for patents, trademarks, and copyrights. For patents and trademarks, the Act permits the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and the Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office to change the deadlines imposed by Title 35 of the United States Code, the Trademark Act, Section 18 of the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act ...
Businesses are experiencing devastating losses due to mandated restrictions and shutdowns, as well as the cancellation of events. What’s more, no one knows how long this will continue. As a result, many businesses are considering whether their insurance might provide some relief from the losses they already have incurred, or likely will incur, due to this crisis ...
BT announced earlier this week that it plans to cut between 40,000 and 55,000 jobs by 2030. It expects around 10,000 of these roles to be replaced by AI, particularly in customer services. BT’s recent announcement is a reminder that increased use of AI is now a key board agenda item, with businesses exploring whether they can increase efficiency and improve operations by investing in generative AI ...
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP, the Central Bank of the Philippines) has issued Circular No. 1105, Series of 20201 (Digital Bank Circular) dated December 2, 2020 to provide guidelines on the establishment of digital banks. This circular took effect on December 23, 2020 and was promulgated pursuant to the Monetary Board’s authority under Section 3.2(g) of the General Banking Law of 2000 to create other classes of banks ...
At the end of January, the 468-page judgement of BSkyB v EDS was published, nearly eighteen months after the court hearing closed. Many, varied and worrying predictions as to the potential impact of this judgement had been made, but ultimately the judgement is unlikely to lead to radical changes in the relationship between IT and other suppliers and their customers ...
The Belgian Data Protection Authority (“DPA”) has fined Brussels Airport and Brussels South Charleroi Airport 200,000 and 100,000 EUR respectively for their use of thermal cameras during the Covid-19 pandemic. In two extensive decisions (Brussels decisionandCharleroi decision), the DPA has fined the two airports for their use ofthermal cameras ...
On April 21, 2020, the Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General of British Columbia issued a Ministerial Order (the “Order”) permitting electronic attendance at meetings (collectively referred to as “Corporate Meetings”) held pursuant to the Business Corporations Act, the Cooperative Association Act and the Societies Act (collectively, the “Statutes”) ...
