362 / 424
GAZETTE
DECEMBER 1995
The Solicitors Acts, 1954 to 1994
(Professional Indemnity Insurance)
Regulations, 1995 (S.I. 312 of 1995)
These Regulations implement Section 26
of the Solicitors (Amendment) Act, 1994
and provide for the following:
1. The coming into effect of the
Regulations on
1 December 1995,
subject to transitional provisions for
the practice year 1996, (from now on
coinciding with the calendar year)
taking account of the reality that most
solicitors currently hold twelve month
Professional Indemnity cover (of at
least £250,000) up to dates expiring
during 1996.
2. The establishment, membership and
functions of the Professional
Indemnity Insurance (PII) Committee;
its membership comprising two-thirds
Council members together with
representatives of the "qualified
insurers" either as full members or as
"participating observers".
3. Apart from employed solicitors
providing legal services only to and
for their non-solicitor employers (i.e.
full-time in-house solicitors), any
solicitor applying for a practising
certificate from 1 January 1997 will
have to furnish to the Society written
confirmation from a "qualified
insurer" of there being in force
relating to him/her the "minimum
level of cover" for the duration of the
practice year (i.e., the calendar year)
in respect of which such practising
certificate so applied for relates.
4. As and from a solicitor's next
insurance renewal date during 1996,
the "minimum level of cover" is to be
£350,000 for each and every claim
(including claimants' legal costs)
unlimited in the aggregate ("in respect
ot anv act or omission of the insured
which gives rise to a claim or which
the insured considers may give rise to
a claim and is duly notified to the
qualified insurer concerned during the
practice year in question"), together
with the insured's own legal costs;
subject to such increases as may be
specified by the Council from time to
time.
[Note:
(1) Where the PII
Committee specify as appropriate
(usually where the Assigned Risks
Pool is involved) the minimum level
of cover may be the lesser form of
cover of £350,000 "in the aggregate";
(2) These Regulations are only
concerned with what the minimum
level of Professional Indemnity cover
for each solicitor should be; and
whatever Professional Indemnity
cover higher than the minimum an
individual solicitor or firmof
solicitors choose(s) to have, and from
what insurer, is entirely a matter for
that solicitor or firm.]
5. The minimum level of cover must be
obtained from a "qualified insurer",
meaning an insurer who enters into a
form of agreement with the Society as
set out in the Schedule to the
Regulations and who agrees to have
"approved indemnity terms" (i.e.,
policy conditions) as set out in the
Appendix to the Regulations.
6. If a solicitor with a current practising
certificate changes his/her status
during the practice year (i.e. moves
from one solicitor's practice to
another) he/she must notify the
Society and verify that his/her
minimum level of cover continues for
the remainder of that practice year.
7. A solicitor who is refused the
minimum level of cover by at least
three qualified insurers (to include the
Solicitors Mutual Defence Fund), or
who is in effect so refused by the
quotation to him of very onerous
terms or premia ("constructive
declinature"), may apply to the PII
Committee for admission to the
"Assigned Risks Pool", which
comprises all the qualified insurers for
the time being. |
Note:
Subjcct lo
certain requirements relating to 1 in-
payment of a premium deposit of
200% of the preceding year's
minimum level of cover premium
(actual or estimated by the Assigned
Risks Pool Manager and to a Risk
Management Audit of the practice, the
Assigned Risks Pool may provide the
minimum level of cover to the
solicitor concerned. There is provision
for an appeal to the High Court by a
solicitor who is refused cover by the
Assigned Risks Pool.]
8. The maximum period a solicitor can
remain in the Assigned Risks Pool is
two practice years.
[Note:
It is
unlikely that there will be many
situations where a solicitor, even with
an indifferent Professional Indemnity
claims record, will be unable to get
Professional Indemnity cover from
one of the qualified insurers.
However, the detailed provisions
relating to the operation of the
Assigned Risks Pool reflect: (i) the
need to ensure that a solicitor is not
unreasonably
prevented from
practising by reason of not being able
to get the minimum level of cover
necessary to obtain a practising
certificate; and, (ii) the concerns of the
qualified insurers who will in the final
analysis be required to provide the
minimum level of cover to a solicitor
who may be a very bad insurance
risk.]
9. The Society will be required to
maintain an "insurance record",
available to the public, containing the
name of the qualified insurer
providing the minimum level of cover
to each solicitor who is issued with a
practising certificate.
•
FOUR COURTS
CONSULTATION
ROOMS
Please note that the charges for
the above will be as follows, with
effect from 1 January, 1996:-
• 2 hou r s
- £ 30
• All D a y - £ 1 00
The telephone system, telephone
booths and ground floor rooms
have all been upgraded in the last
18 months.
This increase will enable the
completion of refurbishment work
to the rooms.
338