How To Get After The Event Insurance For Clinical Negligence Litigation

Transcription

1 After the Event Insurance for Clinical Negligence Litigation Advantage Legal expenses insurance experts ATE

2 w Contents Temple Legal Protection After the Event Insurance from Temple Benefits of ATE Insurance Key features of ATE Insurance from Temple Working with Temple The next step LASPO brings a whole new set of challenges for the Legal Industry. Despite the significant changes which are said to be necessary to reduce the costs of litigation there remain substantial financial risks for all litigants. Your clients still face the prospect of losing all of their damages in the event you fail to beat the opponents offer. They may also have to bear the cost of paying their own disbursements in the event their claim is lost or abandoned. After the Event Insurance provides the answer by transferring those risks at a competitive price. Temple Legal Protection We are one of the country s leading underwriters of legal expenses insurance and we bring together a wealth of insurance and legal experience through a highly skilled team of people. This means we can provide a wide range of competitive insurance solutions for you. Temple is a natural first choice among solicitors for After the Event (ATE) insurance for clinical negligence disputes in England and Wales. This is why many of the country s best-known law firms insure their clients with Temple. Since the year 1999, we have established ourselves as a reputable and reliable market leader with unrivalled experience of the ATE market. Our policy wording, premium levels and our approach have been upheld by the highest courts. Our underwriters regularly provide expert evidence to the courts. Temple recognises that clinical negligence is an entirely different animal to other types of personal litigation. It can be costly and sometimes unpredictable, which is why you need an ATE provider that understands the dynamics of this type of litigation and will support cases through the highs and lows. Our experience means we understand your business and can help you to enhance the relationship with your clients. From arranging cover to paying claims promptly, you can trust Temple to recognise and respond to the issues you face in all types of clinical negligence. We believe our expertise and experience are unrivalled and we want to share them with you. Clinical

3 Our ATE Insurance team can offer you: Support - We have a team of specialist clinical negligence underwriters and lawyers whose knowledge of the market is unrivalled. They each have high levels of authority because we understand your need for a prompt, intelligent and robust response. Experience - We have been providing ATE insurance for clinical negligence cases, including delegated authority schemes, since We provide high limits of indemnity for clinical negligence disputes. Experts - Many of our underwriters are lawyers who have significant experience as litigators in private practice or have considerable experience within the insurance market. Some have been called upon to provide evidence to the courts, on the subject of ATE insurance. Solutions - We have the ability, skill and flexibility to tailor our cover to the needs of your firm, for a wide range of clinical negligence disputes. We will design the optimum scheme for you, based on your volume of work and experience Influence - We are regularly asked to participate in market and governmental forums, such as the Ministry of Justice consultations and Civil Justice Council funding seminars. Authority - We were successfully involved in almost all the ATE insurance landmark cases before Leader - Our innovative approach means that aspects of our product have paved the way for the rest of the market to follow, for example, we introduced deferred and stepped premiums which have now become standard market practice. Our deferred premiums still feature in the LASPO age. Professionalism - You will always receive a professional, courteous and individual service from our team. Security - We are authorised by the FCA. Our UK based insurance is backed by A-rated security. After the Event Insurance from Temple What is After the Event Insurance? ATE is an insurance that is taken out after a dispute has arisen. It insures a party to a dispute against the risk of the liability to pay their opponent s costs. Clinical negligence lawyers are increasingly aware of the importance of ATE insurance for their clients cases and they are correct because with the withdrawal of public funding there has been a subsequent rise in the use of CFAs for clinical negligence claims. Thus the use of ATE insurance, linked to CFAs, has become key to the funding of clinical negligence litigation. What does Temple s insurance cover? The insurance will indemnify the insured s liability for their opponent s costs and own disbursements, excluding own counsel s fees. Is there any assessment fee or joining fee for using Temple? No. The assessment by Temple s expert underwriters is completely free and we do not charge any fee for joining a delegated authority scheme. What if I have a Legal Services Commission (LSC) franchise? Temple is willing to offer ATE insurance where public funding is withdrawn because the case no longer satisfies the costs-benefit analysis ratio, or a change in the client s circumstances means they no longer qualify for public funding. We can also cover cases that have existing BTE insurance but where the indemnity provided by the policy is inadequate, or becomes exhausted. What types of cases can be insured? Any clinical negligence legal action, be it a delay in diagnosis, negligently performed surgery, dental negligence or cosmetic surgery. Any clinical negligence action that is pursued in England or Wales that has reasonable prospects of success can be insured. Insurers other than Temple are often only prepared to insure limited areas of litigation beyond personal injury. When does cover have to be arranged? As soon as you have enough information to decide that the legal action has reasonable prospects of success. Clearly it is in your client s best interests to have insurance cover as soon as possible. In the majority of cases, expert evidence is usually required in order to adequately assess the prospects of success. However, Temple understands that it can be very expensive to obtain full expert evidence before insurance is in place. Therefore, we are willing to assess and insure cases based upon preliminary/screening expert evidence. How are the premiums structured? The premium for Temple s Clinical Negligence cover is a two-part premium. The first part, Premium A, covers your experts reports limited to liability and causation and is usually recoverable from the defendant. The second part, Premium B, covers the defendants costs and the balance of your disbursements. It is normally recovered from the awarded damages and only payable if the case is successful. Who pays the premium if the case is lost or abandoned? Part of the cover under a Temple policy provides indemnity for the full cost of the premium. The policy limit is defined to include the premium in addition to the sum insured. When is the premium payable? Payment is deferred until the conclusion of the legal action so it is payable when you recover damages from your opponent. w

4 After the Event Insurance from Temple Does Temple provide delegated schemes? Yes. We believe that we have a delegated authority scheme that offers the widest scope of cover in the market. We will work with you to design the ultimate scheme for your firm, based on your number of cases and track record. How frequent are the reporting requirements? If you operate a delegated authority scheme then there are minimal reporting requirements. You will maintain the records of insured cases via simple status codes on our on-line system TOPS. These are up-dated by you every 6 months, or when there is a change in the status. What happens if a Part 36 offer is made? When you have a scheme with us, then the decision to make or reject offers will be delegated fully to you by us. The Insured is required to follow your advice. Negligence

5 Benefits of ATE Insurance Research shows that clients are more concerned about their exposure to cost than the outcome of their case. With ATE insurance from Temple, you can allay their fears and transfer the adverse cost risk to Temple. What are the advantages to your firm? ATE insurance unlocks litigation - your clients will be able to afford to litigate so you are able to retain clients who may otherwise have avoided litigation or even gone elsewhere. Further: Fixed ATE premiums allow you to plan ahead with the client regarding the level of deductions from their damages. Impress clients and build loyalty by arranging early ATE insurance to minimise their exposure to their litigation risk. Continue to earn fees by running cases with good prospects of success which might otherwise be abandoned because of the client s financial fear of losing. Have a strong offering to bring in new clients who would otherwise be wary of pursuing litigation. Meet your obligation under SRA Code of Pratice 2011 to discuss with your client whether their liability for another party s costs may be covered by existing insurance or whether specially purchased insurance may be obtained. Remove any risk of a professional liability claim for failing to arrange ATE insurance or make your client aware of its availability. What are the advantages to your client? Clients can litigate without the financial fear of losing their case because: A combination of a CFA and ATE insurance ensures that your clients can pursue litigation without fear of having to pay any costs orders. Their own disbursements (excluding counsel s fees) are also insured under the policy. The premium is self-insured, so your client will not have to pay it if their legal action fails or is abandoned/ discontinued. The premium is not paid up front. It is deferred until the end of the litigation. If the case is won, then Premium A is paid by the opponent and Premium B is recovered from awarded damages. It creates a level playing field for those clients without the financial strength of their opponents (for example the NHS). Legal expenses insurance experts

6 Key features of clinical negligence ATE Insurance from Temple Premiums are competitive. We can offer full Delegated Authority Schemes, which are becoming increasingly rare in this market. Our cover is fully retrospective. You have direct access to experienced underwriters. Premiums are deferred until the end of the case. We have a robust and supportive approach in respect of offers you advise should be rejected. We make no charge for assessment of a case. We cover a wide range of clinical negligence disputes. We seek to build and develop business relationships that are mutually beneficial. Premiums are self-insured: if a case is unsuccessful your client does not pay the premium. We make underwriting decisions promptly. We provide you with intelligent support and decisions throughout the life of the policy, allowing you to focus on the litigation. Insurance covers adverse legal costs (including interlocutory appeals) and own disbursements (excluding own Counsel s fees). We have a pragmatic approach in respect of settlement negotiations. Key features of a delegated authority scheme from Temple Cases with reasonable prospects of success can be insured. Cases with up to three opponents can be insured without prior referral to Temple. Our schemes include dental negligence cases, which other insurers are often unwilling to cover. You have authority to issue proceedings and accept or reject part 36 offers. Insurance

7 Working with Temple Delegated Authority Scheme A scheme is suitable for a firm with a large volume of litigation that can demonstrate a good track record of success. This means that your firm would issue the policies on behalf of the underwriters, obviating the need to complete a proposal form for each case. A scheme also empowers you to make decisions in the case that would otherwise need consent from underwriters, thus allowing you to run a case through to trial without referral to Temple. We keep reporting requirements to a minimum, leaving you free to concentrate on the litigation. The next step Thanks for taking the time to find out about us. We want to deliver ATE insurance solutions that suit you, so we want to understand your firm s needs. Once we know these, we can guide you to the very best solution for you, whether that means a Delegated Authority Scheme or one-off proposals. Find out more Please call us and talk with one of our experienced customer support managers or underwriters on so that you can take advantage of the service we offer. We understand that it is your objective to exceed your clients expectations. We look forward to helping you to achieve this by aiming to provide the best litigation insurance protection for your clients. To arrange a meeting, please call us or ate@temple-legal.co.uk Legal expenses insurance experts

8 Legal expenses insurance experts Temple Legal Protection Ltd Portsmouth House 1 Portsmouth Road Guildford, GU2 4BL ate@temple-legal.co.uk Tel: DX:83188 Guildford