The 2014 Bridgecorp ruling (regarding competing claims between defence costs and third party claims on a policy) has potential implications for Australian entities with exposure to New Zealand legislation. The ruling may not be confined to Directors & Officers Liability policies as the legislation can prevent the holder of any liability policy from accessing defence costs where the limit of liability is defence costs inclusive, which is the case for many liability policies, including professional liability policies.
Liberty‘s Umbrella Defence Costs policy is our unique response to this development.
At a glance: