(New Zealand) Proceedings had been instituted in five causes of action against a company and its director, whose costs were both covered by an insurance policy, and in the case of one of the causes of action against a third person not so covered. All the defendants were represented by the same lawyers. It was common ground that costs not relating in any way to the insured director’s defence would not be covered, while costs exclusively related to the insured director’s defence would be covered. The issue which arose was as to defence costs which related at one and the same time to the defence both of the claim against the insured director and of the claim against the uninsured third person. The courts below took the view that there should be an apportionment.
Held: The relevant insurance. This covered ‘all loss . . which such officer has become legally obligated to pay on account of any claim made against him . . for a wrongful act’. Since this wording would cover the whole costs incurred in the defence where the insured officer was the sole defendant, the Board saw no reason why it should not cover them all, where some of them related also to the defence of an uninsured co-defendant.
Judges:
Lord Goff of Chieveley, Lord Slynn of Hadley, Lord Clyde, Lord Hutton, Justice Henry
Citations:
[1997] UKPC 37, [1997] 1 WLR 1237
Links:
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Cited by:
Approved – Zurich Insurance Plc UK Branch v International Energy Group Ltd SC 20-May-2015
A claim had been made for mesothelioma following exposure to asbestos, but the claim arose in Guernsey. Acknowledging the acute difficultis particular to the evidence in such cases, the House of Lords, in Fairchild. had introduced the Special Rule . .
Cited – Travelers Insurance Company Ltd v XYZ SC 30-Oct-2019
Challenge to the making of a non-party costs order under section 51 of the Senior Courts Act 1981 against the product liability insurer of one of the defendants in litigation being managed under a Group Litigation Order (‘GLO’). Many of the . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Insurance, Damages, Costs
Updated: 04 May 2022; Ref: scu.159249