Publications
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| December 19th 2005 - Landlord's Charter? (Release Me Revisited) | |
| This significant decision means that landlords can be released from their liability under a lease as soon as they sell. | |
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| December 19th 2005 - A clean break | |
| A tenant's break clause in a lease is sometimes conditional on the tenant having materially complied with its covenants. But what is material compliance? | |
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| December 19th 2005 - Don't dig yourself into a hole | |
| When is an advertising hoarding licence really a lease? | |
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| December 8th 2005 - The latest forum shopping trip | |
| Recent years have seen a return of the practice of individuals, allegedly injured in England, seeking to bring product liability actions in the United States against U.S companies. | |
| See full article | |
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| November 29th 2005 - FSA clamp down on brokers' conflicts of interest | |
| The FSA published on its website on 24 November 2005 a letter that it has written to all Chief Executives of supervised brokers following the FSA's study of existing market practice on this issue. Having found existing practices to be broadly deficient, the FSA now require brokers to advise the FSA of the formal conflicts policy that they have put in place, or reviewed, by 20 January 2006. | |
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| November 29th 2005 - E-disclosure and amendments to the CPR | |
| A Wire dealing with the recent amendments to the CPR clarifying the position with regard to the disclosure of electronic documents. The Wire summarises the changes while giving clients practical guidance as to how to deal with these. | |
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| November 29th 2005 - Pharma gold standard gets raised | |
| The first large scale reform of the pharmaceutical industry's Code of Practice takes effect on 1 January 2006. At a time of increasing media pressure and public scrutiny, we examine what the changes will involve for companies. | |
| See full article | |
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| November 28th 2005 - Defensive pre-action | |
| Pre-action disclosure applications are seen as a real money-spinner by some claimant practices. Jay Surti and Rob Strang consider what the defence team can do to this disturbing trend. | |
| See full article | |
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| November 23rd 2005 - Non-party costs orders. Part 3 | |
| The third Wire in our series on costs follows on from our Wire of May 2005 in which we reported on the DAC case of Arkin v Borchard and others (2005) where the Court of Appeal held that a professional funder's liability for the defendants' costs was capped to the amount of funding they provided. | |
| See full article | |
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| November 22nd 2005 - The cost of litigation - are the civil procedure rules delivering? Part 2 | |
| In the first part of this series of articles we dealt with the instance of costs in relation to a prospective Defendant's position before proceedings are commenced under the Civil Procedure Rules ("CPR"). In this article, we concentrate on the effect Part 36 of the CPR has had on the early resolution of civil claims and the impact on that regime of the recent decision in E.Ivor Hughes Educational Foundation -v- Malcolm F.Leach [2005] ("Ivor Hughes"). | |
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| November 18th 2005 - The cost of litigation - are the civil procedure rules delivering? Part 1 | |
| Since 1998, Civil Litigation has been conducted under a regime introduced by the so called Woolf reforms, namely the Civil Procedure Rules ("CPR"). The intention behind the CPR was to streamline the civil claims process and to reduce the need for claims to proceed to trial. Inherent in this regime was the desire to cut down the costs of litigation by providing a framework within which parties are encouraged to reach early settlements and are penalised for failing to pay heed to that encouragement. | |
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| November 16th 2005 - insite - Autumn 2005 | |
| A residential development newsletter from Davies Arnold Cooper. | |
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| November 15th 2005 - Practical Law Company Cross Border Life Sciences Handbook | |
| Simon Pearl, Alison McAdams and Michael Goldberg have written the UK chapter for the fifth edition of the Practical Law Company Cross Border Life Sciences Handbook. The chapter provides a practical overview of the regulations governing life sciences in the UK | |
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| November 3rd 2005 - Courting disaster | |
| Jay Surti and Allison Dias from Davies Arnold Cooper explain the implications for developers of forthcoming corporate manslaughter legislation. | |
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| October 17th 2005 - Dawn raids in the construction industry | |
| As part of ongoing investigations into anticompetitive activity within the industry, the Office of Fair Trading has recently carried out dawn raids on 22 construction companies based in the East Midlands for alleged collusive tendering for both public and private contracts between 2000-2004. It is thought that the raids were as a result of whistleblower information - that is to say, either a company or an employee reported the alleged anticompetitive behaviour to the OFT so as to avoid prosecution. Marjorie Holmes, Partner and Nicola Gare, Senior Solicitor at Davies Arnold Cooper are discussing the possible affect of this for your company. | |
| See full article | |
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| October 3rd 2005 - Tracking down the fraudsters | |
| The first study into commercial insurance fraud reveals wide spread defrauding of insurers by businesses, employees and members of the public. Nick Young summarises the main findings and suggests ways that the industry can tackle the problem. | |
| See full article | |
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| September 16th 2005 - Do you need to be named to be named and shamed? | |
| The third party's dilemma: a recent decision upholds the FSA's procedures | |
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| September 12th 2005 - Statute-barred | |
| When does the limitation period commence for the purposes of a construction contract? Ian Pease assesses the impact of a recent Court of Appeal decision. | |
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| September 9th 2005 - i.e. - Righting the rules | |
| Stephen Cowden, general counsel at the Dutch publishing group, Reed Elsevier, discusses how corporate governance differs on either side of the Atlantic. | |
| See full article | |
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| September 9th 2005 - i.e. - Keeping tabs on the process | |
| The idea of having a consistent regulatory regime across Europe on all matters concerning product safety sounds ideal. But Dr Gillian Dada argues that the amendments to the General Product Safety Regulations may pose more problems than they solve… | |
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| September 9th 2005 - i.e. - It's the thought that counts | |
| Patricia Peter, Head of Corporate Governance at the Institute of Directors, gives a potted history of UK corporate governance and some recommendations for its future direction | |
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| September 9th 2005 - i.e. - Time gentlemen, please | |
| Kenneth McKenzie argues that the wave of recent regulatory intervention in the insurance industry is failing to tackle the priorities…. | |
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| September 9th 2005 - i.e. - Naming and Shaming | |
| It's not the fear of being fined by the FSA that is frightening, it is the fear of losing one's reputation, suggests Jeremy Marshall. | |
| See full article | |
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| September 9th 2005 - i.e - A blot on the landscape | |
| In an effort to increase affordable housing, the government has launched a new initiative to make developers compete for access to land which is publicly-held and which is ripe for re-development. The winners will be those who can demonstrate that they can deliver cheap, volume housing. Lucy Walsh and Colin Oliffe argue that this new initiative means turning the clock back to the poor housing of the 1960's and 70's. We will all be the losers. | |
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| September 9th 2005 - i.e. - The challenger | |
| Openness and transparency are important; they lead to better governance and greater public confidence. Regulation is important in achieving this, says Danny Gowan, but we do not want regulation for the sake of it. | |
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| September 6th 2005 - Run off and regulation - consensus achieved? | |
| Many of the tensions which were once resolved by long term, reciprocal, underwriting solutions now have to be addressed head on. Nowhere, perhaps, is this better illustrated than in the changing landscape of Run Off and the ability of the world's regulators to deal with its challenges. | |
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| September 2nd 2005 - A bitter pill | |
| Last month, a Texan court made an enormous damages award over the drug Vioxx. Fiona Gill and Michael Goldberg explain why UK claimants, however, face in securing funding for similar cases. | |
| See full article | |
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| August 30th 2005 - Part 36 offers: it's the principle that counts | |
| Two recent decisions have emphasised that when considering the effect of CPR Part 36 offers and payments into court the underlying philosophy behind the CPR must not be ignored. | |
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| August 18th 2005 - A question of sport: does the US treatment of football offer any solutions for the UK? | |
| Competion laws in the United States extend - as in most developed nations to virtually every corner of the economy. Sport is of course no exception. The history of the major American sports leagues is replete with significant lawsuits impacting league rules. In the past 20 years, however, the sports leagues have largely avoided competition lawsuits by taking advantage of an important exception to the US competition laws. Marjorie Holmes, Partner specialising in competition law discusses the possible implications for sport in the UK. The above article first appeared in the 9 August 2005 issue of Competition Law Insight and has been reproduced with the permission of the Publishers, Informa Law, 30-32 Mortimer Street, London, W1W 7RE. | |
| See full article | |
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| August 15th 2005 - European court decision delivers vitamin boost for the precautionary principle | |
| Has the European Court of Justice (ECJ) sounded the death knell for the future supply of hundreds of vitamins and mineral supplements? Consumers too were outraged at what they saw as the denial of the freedom to continue buying the products which they believe provide a balanced and healthy diet. | |
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| August 10th 2005 - Assess your risk | |
| Once a fire certificate was obtained for a commercial building you could be sure of having complied with your duties. As from 1 April 2006 fire certificates will be no more, replaced instead by a continuous risk assessment approach. Businesses will have to reassess their fire safety provisions as penalties for non-compliance are severe | |
| See full article | |
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| August 5th 2005 - insite - a residential development newsletter from Davies Arnold Cooper | |
| Here is our first issue of insite, which we will be issuing quarterly with opinion and comment about legislation and interesting case law that could affect your business. | |
| See full article | |
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| July 28th 2005 - OFT raid 22 East Midlands construction companies in anti-competitive investigation | |
| The Office of Fair Trading ("OFT") as part of ongoing investigations into anti-competitive activity within the industry, carried out dawn raids on 22 construction companies based in the East Midlands for alleged collusive tendering for both public and private contracts between 2000 - 2004. | |
| See full article | |
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| July 27th 2005 - Non-disclosure of criminal conviction and charge | |
| On 6 July 2005 The Hon. Mr Justice Andrew Smith sitting in the Commercial Court handed down his judgment in ERC Frankona Reinsurance v American National Insurance Company. In this case the reinsurer, ERC, claimed that it was entitled to avoid a quota share treaty on grounds of misrepresentation and material non-disclosure by American National. | |
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| July 21st 2005 - Don't be led up the garden path! | |
| A public right of way shown on a local authority's definitive map might not be the footpath or bridleway it is recorded as. It may be capable of change if it can be shown that the nature of its use requires a different classification. As a recent case shows a bridleway could be reclassified as a right of way for not only pedestrians and horses but vehicles as well. | |
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| July 21st 2005 - Taxing times | |
| On 1 August 2005, coming on top of other specific SDLT anti-avoidance measures introduced by the 2005 budget, regulations come into force dealing with the anti-avoidance of Stamp Duty Land Tax ("SDLT") in the high value commercial property sector to tackle what the government claims is a high risk area with considerable evidence of avoidance. | |
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| July 19th 2005 - New boss same as the old boss? | |
| Expert evidence is one of the fundamental weapons available to the parties in civil litigation. There are numerous sources to review when considering the deployment of this weapon as the introduction to the Civil Procedural Rule 35 (CPR 35) makes clear. On 5 September 2005, one of the primary sources, the Code of Guidance on expert evidence, is replaced by the "Protocol for the instruction of experts to give evidence in civil claims". | |
| See full article | |
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| July 11th 2005 - Lumbermans Mutual Casualty Co v Bovis Lend Lease Ltd [2004] - It's effect on commutation recoveries: is the decision really that important? | |
| The extent to which a reinsured is entitled to recover from reinsurers monies paid as a result of commutation agreements is a complex question and one where, to date, English law has provided little definitive guidance. | |
| See full article | |
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| July 8th 2005 - Scottish tobacco litigation fails | |
| After 15 months of deliberation and having written a 350,000 word judgment, the Court of Session in Edinburgh dismissed a widow's claim that a tobacco manufacturer was responsible for her husband's death from lung cancer. | |
| See full article | |
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| July 8th 2005 - Extra time for consumers | |
| Claimants in product liability cases have received a boost following the opinion of the Advocate General in recent reference to the European Court. One of the crucial time frames that operates under the Product Liability Directive is determined by when a product "is put into circulation". | |
| See full article | |
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| July 7th 2005 - More power to landlords | |
| Where a tenant acts in flagrant disregard of the terms on which it is permitted to underlet and underlets unlawfully there is no question of the landlord having to act reasonably. Both landlords and tenants should carefully check underletting provisions to assess whether the terms of the tenant's application are lawful. | |
| See full article | |
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| June 16th 2005 - Go thief! stop occupying my land | |
| In the view of the Law Commission and many land owners the law on adverse possession "was tantamount to sanctioning a theft of land" and the squatter a "land thief". However, paper owners now have a better chance of resisting a squatter's claim to their land under the procedure brought in by the Land Registration Act 2002 for claiming title by adverse possession, as well as a number of cases over recent months continuing the trend of favouring the paper owner over the squatter. | |
| See full article | |
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| June 16th 2005 - Brokers' knowledge: the wearing of two hats | |
| Davies Arnold Cooper held a seminar on 8 June on the problem faced by a broker when it receives information in a capacity other than as broker for the assured. | |
| See full article | |
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| June 3rd 2005 - Professional funders | |
| "Not so much facilitating access to justice as gaining access to justice for his own purpose" Dymocks Franchise Systems (NSW) Pty Ltd V Todd [2004]. The Davies Arnold Cooper case of Arkin V Bochard has again been before the Court of Appeal. | |
| See full article | |
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| June 2nd 2005 - The death knell for innominate terms | |
| Up until 24 May 2005 it was arguable that a breach of a notice provision, if sufficiently serious in terms of breach and prejudice suffered, would entitle insurers to reject cover for a notified claim, even if that notice provision is not described as, or held to be, a condition precedent. | |
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| May 31st 2005 - Only 40% of UK businesses aim to comply with competition rules | |
| Is your company too small to be affected by an Office of Fair Trading (OFT) investigation? Do you want to make a complaint to the OFT about your competitors? Do you want to get involved in an investigation by the OFT into the activities of one of your competitors? Davies Arnold Cooper looks at two OFT initiatives raising awareness of competition issues among Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs) and encouraging third party involvement in OFT investigations. | |
| See full article | |
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| May 20th 2005 - Environmental impact assessment and screening options for housing developments | |
| Failure on the part of the decision maker to follow the rules set down in the Town and Country Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) (England and Wales) Regulations 1999 has provided fertile ground for challenging the grant of planning permission. This briefing note from Davies Arnold Cooper discusses the requirements and content of the Regulations. | |
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| May 18th 2005 - Look bulletin May 2005 | |
| Want to keep up with construction law and practice? Never seem to find the time to read that long article or case report? Please click here for Davies Arnold Cooper's Spring edition of Look, our brief and concise construction update bulletin. | |
| See full article | |
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| May 18th 2005 - The duty of utmost good faith: does it have a future? | |
| Davies Arnold Cooper held a seminar on 5 May on whether the duty of utmost good faith has a place in the modern insurance industry. The speakers were John Rowland QC and Alex Gunning of 4 Pump Court. | |
| See full article | |
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| April 29th 2005 - Corporate Manslaughter: Government finally publishes draft bill | |
| Publication of the government's draft corporate manslaughter bill in March 2005 has brought to an end a lengthy period of uncertainty regarding this controversial area of the law. Proposals to change the law have been under consideration since publication of a report by the Law Commission in 1996. Reforming the law on corporate manslaughter has been a Labour party manifesto commitment since 1997 but despite publication of a discussion paper in May 2000, the draft bill has only just emerged from the Home Office. | |
| See full article | |
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| April 28th 2005 - Revision to the construction (design and management) regulations 1994 and construction (health, safety and welfare) regulations 1996 | |
| On 31 March 2005, as part of its strategy to improve safety in the construction industry, the Health and Safety Commission ("HSC") issued a consultation document upon its proposals to revise and consolidate the Construction (Design And Management) Regulations 1994 ("CDM") and the Construction (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1996 (“CHSW”) into the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2006 ("the Regulations"). | |
| See full article | |
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| April 25th 2005 - Use and abuse of expert witnesses | |
| Davies Arnold Cooper held a seminar on 6th April on the use of expert witnesses in litigation. Andrew Davis and Ben Quiney of Crown Office Chambers explained how the introduction of the Civil Procedures Rules has emphasised the need for experts to remain impartial and reinforced experts' overriding duty to the Court, and analysed the direction the law is likely to take with regard to experts' liability to their clients and others. | |
| See full article | |
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| April 25th 2005 - A Practical Guide To National Competition | |
| The anti-trust environment in Europe is undergoing major changes as the so called process of modernisation gathers pace. From May 2004, the European Commission loses its exclusive jurisdiction to deal with restrictive agreements and dominance. As a result EU Member States’ national competition authorities acquire the power to implement European competition rules, as embodied in Articles 81 and 82 of the EC Treaty. | |
| See full article | |
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| April 18th 2005 - Forum shopping set for a big spree | |
| Davies Arnold Cooper discusses the decision in Owusu v Jackson and Others, which leaves English courts vulnerable to try cases even if the court believes it is not the best forum for the case to be heard. | |
| See full article | |
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| April 11th 2005 - Underwriters access to Documentation | |
| Davies Arnold Cooper provides a brief review of the recent decision in Goshhawk Dedicated Limited v Tyser Co Limited. The case acts as a reminder to Underwriters of the need to retain copies of key documentation presented by brokers and to review the effect of their dependency on brokers in relation to access to documentation. | |
| See full article | |
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| April 11th 2005 - Another one bites the dust | |
| The FSA chalk up another market abuse victory but their own procedures again come under scrutiny | |
| See full article | |
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| April 5th 2005 - UK product liability's compensation culture | |
| Until recently the English courts accommodated multiple claimants' product liability claims, some which common sense dictated should have been pursued elsewhere. | |
| See full article | |
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| April 5th 2005 - Group actions in the UK: facing an uncertain future | |
| UK group actions are becoming increasingly few and far between as the Legal Services Commission (LSC), the government body which provides funding for civil and criminal matters, tightens its purse strings and becomes ever more vigilant about funding speculative claims. | |
| See full article | |
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| April 5th 2005 - Food label restrictions in danger of going too far | |
| Striking obesity from the menu is at the top of European legislators' agendas, as food labels promising health and nutritional benefits are under scrutiny like never before. | |
| See full article | |
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| March 30th 2005 - Asbestos related claims - the debate continues | |
| Asbestos related disease litigation has been occupying the courts for many years and it is generally accepted that the level of claims is unlikely to decrease until at least 2020. Davies Arnold Cooper examines the future of asbestos related claims. | |
| See full article | |
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| March 11th 2005 - Insurers must help themselves in fight against fraud | |
| The concept of there being a 'national strategy to tackle fraud' was challenged by delegates at the Association of British Insurers' 2005 Conference during the session 'Working together to tackle fraud', sponsored by Davies Arnold Cooper. So, who does the responsibility for tackling insurance fraud lie with? | |
| See full article | |
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| March 9th 2005 - Solicitors' and Barristers' Liability | |
| On 3rd February the House of Lords delivered judgment in two solicitors negligence actions. The first, Moy emphasises that whilst barristers immunity from suit is dead and buried, solicitors should hesitate before seeking to deflect liability on to the barrister when found in breach of duty to their client. Davies Arnold Cooper discusses the impact of both cases. | |
| See full article | |
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| March 5th 2005 - Resale price maintenance - Is price control ever justified? | |
| Prices can be kept at a profitable level either by government regulation or by the private arrangements of manufacturers. These two methods overlap in the European Union, where government regulation is subordinate to EU competition law. Davies Arnold Cooper considers the extent to which maintaining prices can ever be tolerated in Europe. | |
| See full article | |
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| March 1st 2005 - Walking an ethical tightrope - solicitors' conflicting duties to the insurer and the insured | |
| The first seminar of the New Year for DAC's Insurance Group, given by Aidan Christie and Kate Livesey of 4 Pump Court, covered the issues arising when a conflict of interest occurs for solicitors acting for both insurers and insureds when investigating policy issues. | |
| See full article | |
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| February 24th 2005 - Product liability issues | |
| In the February issue of the International Association of Defense Counsel (IADC) newsletter, Davies Arnold Cooper discusses UK product liability issues. Focusing on group actions in the UK, asbestos-related disease litigation and the dangers of food label restrictions going too far; we provide an overview of product liability in the UK. | |
| See full article | |
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| February 16th 2005 - Look bulletin February 2005 | |
| Want to keep up with construction law and practice? Never seem to find the time to read that long article or case report? Please click here for Davies Arnold Cooper's Winter edition of Look, our brief and concise construction update bulletin. | |
| See full article | |
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| February 11th 2005 - Freedom of Information Act | |
| The Freedom of Information Act 2000 ("the FOIA) came into effect on 1st January 2005. For the first time in the United Kingdom, the individual is given a universal right of access to official information. Davies Arnold Cooper discusses its effects. | |
| See full article | |
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| February 11th 2005 - FSA regulation of claims handling | |
| The FSA now regulate the handling and adjustment of general insurance claims in the UK by insurers, Lloyd's agencies, intermediaries and their agents. Davies Arnold Cooper discusses the implications of the regulation. | |
| See full article | |
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| February 8th 2005 - Don't mistake your Overage! | |
| With overage provisons becoming increasingly complex it is comforting to think that if an obvious mistake is made you can always get the contract rectified. Davies Arnold Cooper discusses why this is a false hope. | |
| See full article | |
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| February 4th 2005 - Liability for costs: The beginning of the end for expert witness immunity? | |
| Ross Risby, partner at Davies Arnold Cooper comments on the Phillips & Ors -v- Symes & Ors case and discusses its implications. | |
| See full article | |
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| January 26th 2005 - General Product Safety Regulations 2005 - DTI Consultation now underway | |
| The much-anticipated draft Regulations have now been published. They can be viewed on the Department of Trade and Industry ('DTI') website. The consultation closes on 31 March 2005. | |
| See full article | |
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| January 10th 2005 - Competition enforcement in the European Union: A three-way partnership | |
| Effective enfocement of competition rules in Europe is a priority for European enforcers. By putting emphasis on both public and private enforcement the European Commission and national competition authorities are issuing a clear message: Cartelists beware! In such a climate it is important that companies assess their agreement effectively to ensure compliance with Europe's competition rules. | |
| See full article | |
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| January 10th 2005 - European Authorities Focus on Insurance | |
| A degree of collaboration between insurance companies, often for the benefit of consumers, has traditionally been the norm. However, too much collaboration can restrict competition and be caught by the prohibition of Art. 81 of the EC treaty and the fines for agreements being in breach of the competition rules are up to 10 per cent of the annual turnover of a company. Marjories Holmes and Paula Lennon of Davies Arnold Cooper discuss the impact of the clampdown on insurance companies (featured in European Competition Law Review, Volume 26, Issue 1 p11) | |
| See full article | |
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| January 6th 2005 - A Sirius discourse | |
| The House of Lords recently addressed the basis the Courts should adopt when construing contractual documents affirming a more commercial rather than literalistic approach. | |
| See full article | |
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| January 5th 2005 - Imminent regulation by the FSA - how it affects you | |
| A brave new world starts on 14 January 2005 (General Insurance Day), for businesses involved in the intermediation of general insurance business, when the FSA commences supervision of this sector. | |
| See full article | |
