Corporate risks and disputes
We act for corporate policyholders and for insurers, as monitoring counsel or coverage counsel, in their disputes and claims: risk assessment, claims handling, placing policies, pre-litigation and litigation.
France
A liability claim brings together the insured company, its directors, its insurer and sometimes several overlapping policies.
The task is twofold: establish cover, then handle the claim consistently, from notification to resolution. We act on both sides, for corporate policyholders and for insurers, as monitoring counsel or coverage counsel.
What we do
Risk assessment and policies
- Assessing the company’s risks and the cover they call for.
- Review and placing of the company’s insurance policies, at inception and at renewal.
- Reading the clauses that will decide the claim: definition of the claim, policy period, exclusions, limits, defence costs.
Claims handling
- Notifying the claim and dealing with the insurer or with the insured, depending on which side we act for.
- Monitoring counsel: following, for the insurer, a dispute conducted by the insured’s own lawyers, on cover and defence strategy.
- Coverage counsel: analysing cover and taking a position on the claim, for the insurer or for the company.
- Coordination between several policies and several insurers on the same claim.
Pre-litigation and litigation
- Negotiation and settlement with third parties, the insured or the insurer.
- Coverage disputes and liability litigation before the courts or in arbitration.
Lines of cover
- Directors’ and officers’ liability (D&O)
- Employment practices liability (EPL)
- Financial institutions and bankers’ blanket policies
- Professional indemnity
- Fraud policies
- Warranty and indemnity insurance (garanties de passif)
Frequently asked questions
What does a monitoring counsel do?
Where an insured conducts its defence with its own lawyers, the insurer covering the claim needs independent oversight: reading the file, advising on strategy and on proposed settlements, measuring the exposure under the policy. That is the role of monitoring counsel. Coverage counsel, by contrast, gives a view on cover itself: does the policy apply, within what limits, with what reservations.
Does a D&O policy cover defence costs before any finding of liability?
Generally, yes: most directors’ and officers’ policies cover defence costs from the claim onwards, subject to exclusions and limits, sometimes as an advance to be repaid if intentional misconduct is ultimately established. Everything depends on the wording of the policy, to be reread before the claim is notified.