The President of the United States of America, George W. Bush, announced today the Implementation of the Dominican Republic-Central America-United States Free Trade Agreement, DR-CAFTA, with respect to the Dominican Republic. See press release from The White House http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2007/03/20070301.html#).The implementation of this free trade treaty opens a new era of commercial opportunities between the member countries to the DR-CAFTA ...
Can the cost of remedying a manufacturing defect be considered as damage resulting from an “accident” covered under a liability insurance policy? This is the question the Quebec Court of Appeal considered in CGU, Compagnie d’Assurance du Canada v. Soprema Inc., [2007] QCCA 113 ...
An Illinois federal district court held, in Massachusetts Bay Ins. Co. v. Faber Bros., Inc., No. 04 C 5160, 2007 WL 1029366 (N.D. Ill. March 30, 2007), that a distributor of firearms is not covered under general liability insurance contracts for claims alleging that its sales of firearms created a public nuisance that led to bodily injuries. Factual BackgroundThe insured, Faber Bros., Inc., is a distributor and wholesaler of firearms ...
In our November 2006 Asia IP Bulletin, we reported on a ground-breaking agreement (the "Agreement") signed by the Hong Kong and Mainland Chinese Governments, under which they agreed to recognise and enforce judgments made in each others courts. The Agreement followed four years of discussion and legislative changes are now underway in Hong Kong to implement the Agreement ...
On 16 October 2006, the People’s Government of Guangzhou Municipality promulgated the Regulations of Guangzhou Municipality on Encouraging the Establishment of Headquarters and Regional Headquarters with Foreign Investment. The Regulations, which are effective for five years from the date of promulgation (i.e ...
The Ministry of Commerce issued the Provisional Measures on Tasks Related to Complaints from Foreign Investment Enterprises on 1 September 2006. Effective from 1 October 2006, the Measures establish a procedure pursuant to which foreign investment enterprises (FIEs) and foreign investors who feel their lawful rights have been infringed by an administrative agency may lodge a formal complaint ...
Most of the attention at this week's ASEAN foreign ministers meeting in Manila focused on the failure of ASEAN to reach a definitive approach on establishing a human rights body for the grouping. The proposed ASEAN Charter is supposed to address human rights concerns through this new entity. Perhaps given the diversity in governance standards among members, this was to be expected ...
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, applying North Carolina law, held that a liability insurer may properly withdraw from the defense of its policyholder after obtaining a judicial declaration of no coverage, despite the policyholder’s pending appeal, provided the insurer offers to continue defending if the policyholder wins a stay of the trial court’s decision. Auto-Owners Ins. Co. v. Potter et al ...
When August turns to September, 2007, a new market called NewConnect will open on the Warsaw Stock Exchange (WSE). It will support the trading of shares of small and medium-sized companies. The expectation is that issuers entering this new market will not be large companies (of market capitalization around PLN 20–30 million and with a public offer value from PLN several hundred thousand to several million) ...
The highest court in Massachusetts held in Allmerica Financial Corp. v. Certain Underwriters at Lloyd’s London, 449 Mass. 621, 2007 Mass. LEXIS 519 (Aug. 6, 2007), that a “follow form” excess insurer is not obligated to fund a settlement negotiated by the primary insurer ...
On September 26, 2007, the Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal of appellant Citizens for a Quality of Life(1) (“CQL”) and upheld the judgment of the Superior Court(2) dated December 14, 2004, which had refused to grant its motion for authorization to institute a class action against Aéroports de Montréal (“ADM”) on the basis of the lack of similar or related questions raised by the recourses of the class members ...
In its judgment in Bourcier v. La Citadelle(1) rendered on September 4, 2007, the Court of Appeal confirmed that the insured accident victim must inform the insurer no later than one year following the date of the accident, in accordance with Article 2435 C.C.Q. Failure to do so results in forfeiture of the right to the benefit provided for in the accident insurance policy.The factsMs. Bourcier was the victim of a serious motorcycle accident on September 11, 2001 ...
The Texas Supreme Court ruled that a primary insurer has no actionable right of contribution or subrogation against a co-primary insurer that declined to settle on terms agreed to by the first primary carrier. Mid-Continent Insurance Company v. Liberty Mutual Insurance Company, No. 05-0261 (Tex. October 12, 2007) ...
The U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana held that "actions of civil authority" that do not prohibit access to an insured’s premises do not trigger civil authority coverage under a first-party policy. Kean, Miller, Hawthorne, D’Armond, McCowan & Jarman, LLP v. National Fire Ins. Co. of Hartford, No. 06-770-C, 2007 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 64208 (M.D.La. Aug ...
In Castillo v. State Farm Florida Insurance Co., No. 3D06-2874 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. Oct. 17, 2007), the Court of Appeal of Florida, Third District, reversed a decision granting summary judgment in favor of an insurer, finding issues of fact about whether earth movement, an excluded peril under a homeowners’ insurance policy, played a part in a dwelling’s damage from nearby blasting ...
On August 16, 2007, the Court of Appeal issued a judgment, written by Mr. Justice Paul-André Gendreau, pertaining to the absence of an initial disclosure of risk to the new insurer in the context of the transfer of an insurance portfolio by a broker.(1) An insurer who accepts the transfer of a policy without ascertaining its current exposure to risk, is deemed to have waived his right to this information ...
Austria has approximately 140 insurance companies (including 52 Austrian insurance companies, 59 Austrian small mutual associations, and 25 branches of EU/EEA-insurers). The Austrian Financial Market Authority (Finanzmarktaufsichtsbehörde – "FMA"), which supervises the sector, provides a list of insurance undertakings containing all insurance companies authorized to conduct insurance business in Austria plus all insurance classes that the respective companies hold a licence for ...
A Georgia intermediate appellate court has affirmed summary judgment in favor of an insurer, holding that there can be no “advertising injury” coverage under a commercial general liability insurance contract where an underlying lawsuit concerning division of profits from a joint copyright work fails to allege a misappropriation of advertising ideas. James C. Shafe, et al. v. American States Insurance Co., No. A07A0879, 2007 Ga. App. LEXIS 1193 (Ga. App ...
On September 27, 2007, Mr. Justice Jean-Guy Dubois of the Superior Court rendered a judgment interpreting the definition of the word “insured” in an insurance policy, more particularly as regards the exclusion of damages caused to a [Translation] “person living under the same roof ”.(1)The facts: The parents of plaintiff Hugo Bérard divorced in 2000. Nathalie Gravel, his mother, who was also a plaintiff, had custody ...
An Illinois intermediate appellate court found that the insured’s failure to comply with the notice conditions in contract for general liability insurance barred coverage. Board of Education of Township High School District No. 211, Cook County, Illinois v. TIG Insurance Company, No. 1-05-1732 (Ill. App. 3d Div. December 26, 2007). The Board of Education of Township High School District No ...
Investors in Scottish commercial property have been warned that the sector may see a zero per cent rate of growth in 2008 as supply continues to outstrip demand.In comparison to the situation just 12 months ago, where there were ten buyers for every commercial property put on the market, now ten sellers exist for every purchaser, new research from industry consultants Drivers Jonas has revealed ...
In late November 2007, the Supreme Court rendered a judgment on the law of sale in Quebec in the case of ABB Inc. v. Domtar Inc.(1) in which it pointed out important differences between Quebec law and the law of the other Canadian provinces regarding limitation of liability clauses ...
In two separate opinions, five to two majority of the New York Court of Appeals ruled that an insured can assert a claim form consequential damages for an insurer’s alleged bad faith breach of a first-party insurance contract. Bi-Economy Market, Inc. v. Harleysville Insurance Company of New York, No. 14 (N.Y. February 19, 2008); Panasia Estates, Inc. v. Hudson Insurance Company, No. 15 (N.Y. February 19, 2008) ...
