Civil Liability Newsletter - 23rd April 2020

Welcome to our second newsletter continuing the theme of easy online access to cases and commentary of interest.  Thank you for the positive feedback we have received following our first offering.  If there are any topics you would wish us to cover or any other feedback, do let us know.

This week saw the launch of our Quarantine Queries initiative giving you the chance to speak to one of our civil law group and chew over any burning issues on which you want a quick view.  Already the take up of this offering suggests we are all missing our chats with colleagues at the water cooler/ coffee shop or bar.  If you want to use this service contact our clerks Ben Sundborg, Harry Airth and Gemma Aldeen whose contact details can be found here.

Webinars

We have launched our regular webinar series to (ideally) be held on Tuesday Teatime, 3:30pm.  You can sign up to watch live or tune in later at a time to suit you.

Managing Injury Litigation in a Pandemic  This webinar took place at 2pm today and we hope many of you have just enjoyed watching. But, if you missed it, please click this link to see what Susan Rodway QC and Sadie Crapper have to say about the medico-legal world in a time of pandemic.

Upcoming:

Tuesday 28 April @ 3:30pm : Fatal Accident Claims  Emily Formby will talk on some of the hot topics around fatal accident claims.

Tuesday 5 May @3:30pm: Susan Rodway QC and Nicola Greaney will talk on recent cases of Barclays, Morrison and EXE and look at the shifting sands of corporate responsibility for employers and vicarious liability

Monday 11 May @3:30pm: Human Rights Act claims in clinical negligence: Vikram Sachdeva QC, Steve Broach and Stephanie David will talk about some of the many human rights issues around clinical negligence claim, highly relevant right now, including claims against private health and care providers

We will send you further details on how to register shortly but please do also keep and eye on our website here. Webinars are free to attend but you will need to sign up in advance to watch live.

Below please find articles prepared by members of 39 Essex Chambers which may be of interest:

Avoidance of EL policies Geoffrey B. Brown discusses the avoidance of employers' liability policies for non-disclosure or misrepresentation HERE 

Causation of harm In a set of facts you couldn't make up, Derek O'Sullivan QC and Michael Standing discuss their recent success in Farah v Adbullahi [2020] EWHC 825 looking at multiple tortfeasors and causation of harm and diffuse axonal injury HERE

Is a territorial limit in a policy of insurance a jurisdiction agreement? Continuing his exploration of some of the tricky issues in foreign claims, Bernard Doherty considers the case of Hutchinson v (1) Mapfre (2) Ice Mountain Ibiza S L [2020] EWHC 178  in which he represented D1 in a jurisdiction challenge raising issues as to the impact of the terms of a Spanish insurance policy on a direct right of action HERE

What price care? James Todd QC and Emma Corkill consider what standard of care hospitals should be held to in the Covid – 19 pandemic HERE 

William Norris QC considers remote hearings William Norris QC provides insight into remote hearings following some truly global hearings he has experienced while sitting as Chairman on panels for Sport Resolutions HERE 

Susan Rodway QC discusses the recent abuse case of Exe v Governors of the Royal Naval School [2020] EWHC 596 And considers limitation - which stopped the claim in its track HERE. This case will form one of the cases that Susan Rodway QC and Nicola Greaney will discuss in their forthcoming webinar – details to follow...