Steven O’Sullivan advocates the policy of notification, notification, notification
As summer arrives, every firm must think about renewing their professional indemnity insurance on 1 October. Renewal has not been without its problems lately. The Law Society has recently produced a practice note for firms about renewal but they fail to talk about the annual trawl for claims and circumstances that forms part of the process. It’s sensible not to rely on renewal to unearth potential claims, but when should matters be notified generally?
What does the policy say?
Your policy will oblige you to notify a claim, loss, suspicion of dishonesty by someone in the firm, investigation or disciplinary proceedings and “circumstances”.
What does this mean in practice? In terms of claims, it’s easy to give guidance. If you receive communication from a client or their new solicitor that suggests that they are thinking of claiming from your firm, notify. The merits or otherwise of the suggestion are irrelevant: misconceived or outrageous allegations should equally be notified. There is no purpose in agonising over whether the policy defines it as a claim,
