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4. News from the National Chapters
ARGENTINA
Summary report on the Argentine Insurance Law Conference, October 2004
The Argentine Insurance Law Association, the Argentine Insurance Law Institute and the Lomas de Zamora Bar Association presented Seguros Lomas 2004 (the XI National Seminar on Insurance Law, the IV Latin American Seminar on Insurance Law and the IX International Conference) on 27-29 October 2004 in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
The Congress was chaired by the Conference President, Oscar Benclowicz. Attending delegates included prominent guests from Argentina, Colombia, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay. The international conference was chaired by AIDA President, Prof. Carlos Ignacio Jaramillo J who, on the second day, gave a brilliant presentation on ‘The Insured’s Defender as an Alternative Dispute Resolution Mechanism in Insurance – International Scope’.
Sixty-seven papers were delivered and published prior to the Congress. The Congress included five workshops which focused on: alternative dispute resolution – arbitration and mediation; civil liability and its insurance and data processing; individual insurance and social security, ART (Labour Risk Insurers), AFJP (Pension Funds Administrators), Social Security and other health service providers; individual insurance in Act 17 418; and insurance during financial crises, state control and fiscalization of the insurance and reinsurance activity, reinsurance and co-insurance.
The Congress proved to be a great success. The great interest and enthusiasm was reflected in the excellent works produced and the fruitful debates which took place.
Summarised from a report produced by Oscar Benclowicz, Conference President.
For a full, more detailed report on the Congress, including the concluding workshop ‘statements’, please click on the relevant link below:
Click here to view in Spanish
Click here to view the English translation
AUSTRALIA
Article on the 2004 National Conference of the Australian Insurance Law Association
In September 2004, the beautiful city of Perth, Western Australia, played host to the National Conference of the Australian Insurance Law Association (AILA).
John-Paul Wilson
Each year, one of the State branches of AILA organises and holds the National Conference, which is AILA's premiere educational and social event. The theme of the 2004 National Conference was 'Risky Business', and John-Paul Wilson, Chair of the Conference Organising Committee, told delegates:
“Our industry is about risk, and the program reflects on the risks covered by insurance, managing…those risks, and also the risks associated with managing and litigating the resulting claims…The last few years have seen the role of insurance in the community being discussed in the public domain like never before.”
The keynote address at the opening session of the Conference was delivered by Justice Carmel McLure of the Supreme Court of Western Australia. Justice McLure was introduced by Justice Peter Underwood (then Senior Puisne Judge and now Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Tasmania).
Justice McLure delivered the keynote address
Justice McLure's address focused on the recent decisions of the High Court of Australia on the common law of negligence, with particular emphasis on developments in relation to the duty and standard of care, and how those developments impact on the risk of litigation.
As those interested in Australian insurance law will know, tort law in Australia is undergoing dramatic change, both as a result of recently enacted tort-reform legislation and case law developments delivered by the Gleeson High Court and other appellate courts.
Justice McLure concentrated on Australian case law developments. Her Honour concluded that:
“Recent High Court decisions are consistent with the established trend in favour of pro‑defendant outcomes. The outcomes are being achieved as a result of the application of the requirements that there be a duty of care and breach of that duty. The High Court has acknowledged that, in the past, the law was applied too favourably in favour of plaintiffs. It is now in the process of achieving a more appropriate balance between the competing policy interests in play. My perception is that the period of transition is incomplete but that there is no intention to move the balance too far in favour of defendants. At the same time, the High Court is continuing the trend towards a coherent application of the general principles of negligence to all claims which requires that practitioners have a proper understanding of the policy issues involved and the relevance and complex interaction of a variety of factors, the weight to be given to which may vary from case to case. The High Court has not provided a simple formula from which outcomes can be predicted with a high degree of confidence. As reasonableness involves a value judgment based on the facts of each case, such a formula is unachievable.”
The keynote address of the second day of the National Conference was delivered by Fred Hawke. Mr Hawke delivered a paper he had co-written with Nancy Milne discussing the report and recommendations of the Review of the Insurance Contracts Act 1984. The review had been commissioned by the Australian Department of Treasury, and was carried out by Alan Cameron AM (former Chair of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission) and Ms Milne.
Fred Hawke
The Review of the Insurance Contracts Act was conducted in 2003/2004, approximately 20 years after the Act had been passed as law throughout Australia.
It may be recalled that the Insurance Contracts Act 1984 effected significant changes to the law of insurance in Australia. This was particularly so in connection with the duty of utmost good faith (Sections 13 and 14 of the Act), non-disclosure and misrepresentation (Sections 21, 28 and 31 of the Act), and control over contract terms (Sections 54 and 40(3)).
The review was the first time since the inception of the Insurance Contracts Act that the Federal Government had commissioned a detailed clause by clause, section by section review of the legislation. The paper by Hawke and Milne summarised the recommendations and findings of the review panel.
Conference speaker Steve Knight
The National Conference was attended by more than 250 delegates and speakers from throughout Australia and New Zealand. The conference provided a thought-provoking educational program combined with a busy social schedule. The West Australian branch of AILA, and its Conference Organising Committee, are to be congratulated for the success of the Conference and for the organisation excellence which made that possible.
Paul O'Brien
Immediate Past President of the New South Wales branch of AILA
Partner, Phillips Fox, Sydney
GERMANY
The German National Section, the German Society for Insurance Science (Deutscher Verein Für Versicherungswissenschaft EV), is holding an international conference from 25 to 27 May 2005. The conference theme is ‘The Insurance Industry in a Globalised World’. It will be in German and will be held at the Intercontinental Hotel in Berlin. The conference is being organised by Prof. Ulrich Hubner, President of the German Section. Meetings of the AIDA Presidential Council and the AIDA Reinsurance Working Party have been scheduled for 25 May, to coincide with the conference. For further details and to view the full conference programme, please click here.
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