Sienkiewicz v Greif [2011] UKSC 10 – Law Journals

Valuation Disputes: Limiting liability

Alex Anderson and Claire McNicholl report on a case which raises points of concern for valuers ‘By a majority of two to one, the Court of Appeal held that the “but for” test should be applied but that it was not correctly applied by the High Court.’Valuers should exercise caution concerning the scope of the …

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Advocate’s Advice: Keeping it simple

Bill Braithwaite QC highlights a judgment with clear findings on causation and material contribution ‘A claim will fail if the most that can be said is that the claimant’s injury is likely to have been caused by one or more of a number of disparate factors, one of which was attributable to a wrongful act …

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Mesothelioma: Rex, asbestos and the de minimis rule

John McDonald discusses what is meant by a material increase in risk after exposure to asbestos ‘The issue of what is de minimis is a question of fact for determination by the trial judge, rather than purely a matter of medical evidence.’Many of you will know the limerick which goes as follows: There was a …

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Fairchild Rules: Fair enough?

Patrick Limb QC examines the decision in the appeal case of IEG v Zurich ‘The relaxation of the causal requirement in mesothelioma claims emerged from the conjoined appeals in Fairchild precisely because the insurers were hoping that such claims would founder on the rock of uncertainty created by the inability to satisfy the “but for” …

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Occupational Disease: Extent of insurance cover for mesothelioma claims

Anna Macey discusses the decision in International Energy Group Ltd v Zurich Insurance plc UK Ltd The relationship between an insurer and an insured is contractual, and the premium reflects the risk the insurer is prepared to take and the price they are prepared to accept for it.In this interesting case the Court of Appeal …

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Industrial disease: Divisible and indivisible injuries

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Tim Trotman reviews the tests for factual causation following Sienkiewicz v Greif (UK) Ltd ‘The tests can be encapsulated in familiar phrases: “but for”, “material contribution”, “material increase in risk” and “apportionment”, but discriminating factual cases and matching them to the correct legal test has become far more difficult in the recent past.’ This article …

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Review: A year in the life

Mark Fowles looks back at the year’s important personal injury cases ‘English law has always been nervous about dealing with issues of causation The modern test is a test of policy. The first test is predominantly factual. The second gathers up much of the traditional language that lawyers use in attempting to set a limit …

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