At the time, most captive owners (and their advisers) were attracted by Bermuda's perceived economic, social and political stability, its strong infrastructure, its close proximity to New York and a legal system that tended to follow the English common law and provided for an ultimate right of appeal to the Privy Council in the U.K ...
Two significant events this week raised eyebrows in the lucrative world of live sports broadcasting. Firstly, Facebook agreed an exclusive deal to show La Liga to users in Asian territories including India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Pakistan. It will live stream all 380 matches this season for free to its 348 million users in the region. The move fits with Facebook's ambition to grow use of its social networking platform outside markets that have reached saturation ...
Armando Aznar J. of the Court of Québec recently rendered a harsh judgment against an insurance company.1 Although the amounts at stake were minimal, the decision may have a significant impact on insurers. This is one of the rare judgments where an insurer was ordered to pay exemplary and moral damages for having made allegations in the pleadings based on unjustified suspicions resulting in damages to the integrity and honesty of its insured ...
Recently, Dinsmore has noticed an uptake in claimant allegations that an employer has caused an accident due to violation of a specific safety requirement (VSSR). A VSSR award is an additional award paid to the employee by the Bureau of Workers’ Compensation (BWC) billed directly to state fund employers or paid directly by a self-insured employer ...
With federal privacy legislation stalled and indefinitely delayed, states have moved forward to push an impressive number of privacy laws forward over the last several years. Some of these laws are still relatively obscure, but are being increasingly enforced by state regulators and through litigation ...
Over the previous couple of years, the region of South-Eastern Europe, or more specifically, the Western Balkans, has enjoyed a globally acknowledged position of an investment hot-spot. This comes as no surprise if we take into account how the socialist past of encompassing countries has provided their contemporary incarnations with a number of state-owned companies in core industries, all of which now present viable targets for Private Equity funds and M&A activities in general ...
Over the previous couple of years, the region of South-Eastern Europe, or more specifically, the Western Balkans, has enjoyed a globally acknowledged position of an investment hot-spot. This comes as no surprise if we take into account how the socialist past of encompassing countries has provided their contemporary incarnations with a number of state-owned companies in core industries, all of which now present viable targets for Private Equity funds and M&A activities in general ...
The High Court has handed down three new judgments on BI insurance claims resulting from Covid-19: Stonegate Pub Co Ltd v MS Amlin Corporate Member Ltd [2022] EWHC 2548 (Comm), Various Eateries Trading Ltd (formerly Strada Trading Ltd) v Allianz Insurance Plc [2022] EWHC 2549 (Comm) and Greggs v Zurich Insurance Plc [2022] EWHC 2545 (Comm). These cases are another reminder of the complexities of BI insurance and the particular challenges created by Covid-19 ...
Corporations and governments are ferreting out and squirreling away voluminous, detailed and private information about each and every one of us – and they are not afraid to use it. Should we be worried? Singapore’s Health Minister recently revealed that confidential details of 14,200 HIV-positive people, stolen from a government public health database, had been leaked online by a disgruntled US citizen who had been in a romantic relationship with a local doctor ...
A North Carolina court has required Cincinnati Insurance Company to provide business interruption and extra expense coverage to 16 North Carolina restaurants that lost the use of and access to their properties due to COVID-19 civil authority orders (see North State Deli, LLC, et al. v. Cincinnati Insurance Co. et al.) ...
On June 7, 2023, the Minister of Finance of Quebec tabled and presented Bill 30 before the National Assembly, an omnibus bill entitled An Act to amend various provisions mainly with respect to the financial sector (hereinafter the ?Bill?). The Bill includes certain amendments to the provisions of the Insurers Act (?IA?) and the Act respecting the distribution of financial products and services (?DA?) ...
Earlier this month, Canadian Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez introduced Bill C-18 (Online News Act) in Parliament. This bill, which was largely inspired by similar legislation in Australia, aims to reduce bargaining imbalances between online platforms and Canadian news outlets in terms of how these ?digital news intermediaries? allow news content to be accessed and shared on their platforms ...
Since its emergence from Wuhan, China, in December, the coronavirus (COVID-19) has exacted an immense human cost in death and suffering, with tens of thousands of confirmed cases worldwide. As the world reacts, the spread of this disease has also impacted businesses and world markets. Governments around the globe have restricted travel from areas with widespread, sustained transmission rates. Corporations have also suspended travel and operations in areas with high rates of infection ...
On July 10th, 2023, the Chamber of Deputies approved in its Second Constitutional Procedure the bill of law that, among other matters, aims to recognize Internet access as a Public Telecommunications Service (bulletin No. 11,632-15) (the "Bill"), through various amendments to Law No. 18,168, the General Telecommunications Law ("GTL"). As a result of the abovementioned approval, the Bill has been returned to its chamber of origin (i.e ...
It is well known that insurance companies negotiate low attorney hourly rates for defense of their policyholders.1 When a conflict arises that requires policyholders to retain independent counsel, insurers frequently try to impose those same rates on the policyholders’ selected attorneys. The ensuing fight over billing rates can discourage policyholders from selecting the best attorneys for the job ...
The UK data regulator, the Information Commissioner’s Office (“ICO”), has released a statement warning organisations to assess the public risks of using emotion analysis technologies, with those failing to do so risking investigation and enforcement action ...
Last week, 49 state attorneys general announced a $49.5 million settlement with Blackbaud, Inc. (Blackbaud) over the software company’s data-security practices and its response to a breach in 2020 that exposed the personal information of millions of individuals. Blackbaud provides software solutions to nonprofit organizations, including charities, schools and healthcare agencies, to help them connect with donors and manage data about their constituencies ...
Over the past 1-2 years, a great deal of information concerning the revolutionary technology that is “blockchain” has been published on many business, legal and technology news sources, and innumerable self-proclaimed authorities on the subject have emerged to contribute articles and presentations (ourselves among them) ...
On Dec. 13, 2023, in a 4-1 vote, the Federal Communications Commission finalized new rules to close the so-called lead generator robocall and robotexts loophole, marking a significant paradigm shift in lead generation practices. On Dec ...
The Brexit transition agreement, which governs the relationship between the European Union and the United Kingdom in 2020, including arrangements relating to data protection, ends on December 31, 2020. Without an agreement, the UK becomes a third country The European Union and the United Kingdom are still in intensive negotiations over how they will shape future trade relations, and it is so far unclear whether they will arrive at a follow-up agreement ...
This is a briefing on the following issuances as of April 19, 2020 in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic: A. Extension of Periods for the Filing and Submission of Various Documents and Payment of TaxesB. Mandatory Disclosure of Personal Information of COVID-19 Patients C. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Issuances D. Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP, the Central Bank of the Philippines) Issuances E. Insurance Commission (IC) Issuances F ...
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 ...
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the majority of states have temporarily waived or modified licensure requirements, allowing licensed practitioners from other states to provide in-person or telehealth services without seeking state-specific licenses. During this unprecedented time, states have quickly recognized the need for medical professionals to work across state lines and the importance of expanding telehealth services ...
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 ...
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 ...
