Nowadays it is possible to obtain membership of schemes for many types of claims and we can even negotiate schemes for firms who feel they have a particular source of case type they want to insure. In the interim off the shelf After the Event - ATE delegated authority schemes already exist for the following case types. We are happy to discuss with you what particular insurer and what specific scheme would suit your needs best. We can offer schemes for the following:
ATE Delegated Authority Schemes memberships are appropriate to law firms who have a demonstrable level of expertise in the particular type of litigation for which they wish to provide insurance cover to their clients and who operate cases under a Conditional Fee Agreement (CFA). Hence the law firm will (i) anticipate a certain volume of cases for which ATE Insurance will be required (ii) The Law Firm or the individual fee earners involved will be able to show a track record in that particular case law (iii) the law firm will have a good no claims record if they have used ATE insurance before. The firm may be a member of a Law Society Panel or a specialist interest group such as APIL. In some circumstance a new member of the law firm may have joined to establish a new department but will have a track record by their time at another firm where they specialised in the particular type of case.
Guardian Legal Services are often approached by law firms who are dissatisfied with the performance of their existing insurance scheme. It might be that reporting criteria are too onerous, or the underwriting criteria too severe. Perhaps they feel that premiums are too high or the support they receive is poor. Firms may have been encouraged by an insurer to join a scheme that is unsuitable for their needs. We are happy to discuss your needs in depth and make an independent recommendation to you.
The law firm by avoiding the need to complete an individual proposal form for each case and incur other costs on behalf of their client in the process of submitting an application for ATE Insurance cover can save considerable time and money in the application process. Once the firm has established its credibility with the insurer responsible for underwriting the scheme it will be given authority to insure cases within certain pre-defined parameters. Any cases falling outside of these parameters will simply be referred to the insurance underwriter for their endorsement. This can save time and money for the law firm and can add further protection to the client. In cases where it would be usual to obtain an expert report and a Counsel’s Advice before being able to obtain insurance the client always runs the risk of incurring these disbursements before an insurance policy is incepted. This always has a risk that incurred these costs if insurance should not be forthcoming the client will be responsible for them. In many circumstances the insurance might not cover retrospective costs at all so the client although insured still runs some financial risk should they be unsuccessful.
Delegated Authority Schemes usually require cases to be insured as early as possible so as to avoid selecting against (the practice of only insuring cases with lower prospects of success). However, on the positive side by insuring cases early all costs incurred can be covered by the policy.
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If you are interested in joining a delegated authority scheme contact us to discuss your needs and obtain an application form today.