CHANAKYA NATIONAL LAW UNIVERSITY

Transcription

1 CHANAKYA NATIONAL LAW UNIVERSITY Nyaya Nagar, Mithapur, Patna (8 th Semester) LAW OF INSURANCE Course Module Academic Session- January May, 2015 Course Teacher: Dr. Shaiwal Satyarthi Objectives: Insurance law is a subject of key import to individuals & the business sector. The aspiration of insurance is to compensate the aggrieved party, as far as money can, against loss arising from a variety of risks. Thus, when a person enters into an insurance contract he purchases for an agreed Premium, financial coverage from loss sustained due to the peril insured against. Insurance is omnipresent in the practice of law. In litigation, insurance often determines who gets sued and what they get sued for. In transactional law, insurance frequently constrains or induces deals. The importance of insurance for lawyers stems from the fact that insurance is the primary means by which companies and individuals deal with risks. Lawyers, of course, often make a living either by counselling clients about how to plan for risks or by serving clients whose risks have developed into losses. Just as good attorneys must understand insurance, good insurance arrangements must rely on attorneys. Lawyers are of fundamental importance to insurance, which is itself defined by a complex web of contract and tort law, statutory law and state regulatory law. This course will introduce students to fundamental principles of insurance law and regulation. The operational framework of insurance idea is provided by the general principles of contract. The insurance policy, being a contract, is subject to all the judicial interpretative technique of rules of interpretation as propounded by the judiciary, besides, the insurance idea has a compensatory justice component. This course is designed to acquaint the students; pursuing B.A.LL.B five year program, with the conceptual and operational parameters, of insurance law. MODULE- I INTRODUCTION: a) Definition, nature and history of insurance b) Consideration- need for utmost good faith c) Concept of Insurance and law of contract and law of torts d) Insurable interest- Indemnity- Insurance policy e) Future of insurance in globalized economy f) History and development of insurance in India g) Insurance Regulation Authority role and functions h) Constitutional perspectives- List-I: Union List - Entries 24, 25, 29, 30 and 47, List III: Concurrent List- Entries 23 and 24

2 MODULE- II GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF LAW OF INSURANCE: a) Essential elements of insurance contracts. b) Classification of insurance. c) Formation of insurance contracts. d) Nature of insurance contracts Contract of Aleatory Contract of Uberrima fides Contract of Indemnity Contract of Wager e) Insurable interest f) Premium g) Risk h) Assignment of Insurance policies i) Warranties & disclosures j) Double insurance & re-insurance k) Doctrine of Contribution, Subrogation & Reinstatement To be completed before Surprise Test: Number of Lectures: 20 MODULE- III LIFE INSURANCE: a) Nature & scope of life insurance b) Kinds of life insurance contracts c) Events insured against in life insurance with special reference to Felo-De-Se. d) Factors affecting risk in life insurance e) Amounts recoverable under life insurance f) Persons entitled to payment under life insurance g) Settlement of claims h) Legislations governing Life Insurance- Life Insurance Corporation Act, 1956 The Fatal Accidents Act, 1855 The Personal Injuries (Compensation Insurance) Act, 1963 MODULE- IV FIRE INSURANCE a) Origin and Object of Fire Insurance b) Basic principles of Fire Insurance contracts. c) Nature, Meaning, significance of fire insurance. d) Principles, Conditions, Procedure of taking fire insurance policy. e) Fire Policy, Assignment of Policy, and Settlement of claims. To be completed before Mid Semester Examination: Number of Lectures: 20

3 MODULE- V MARINE INSURANCE: a) Nature and scope b) Classification of marine policies c) The marine Insurance Act 1963 d) Insurable interest, insurable value e) Marine insurance policy- condition- express warranties- construction of terms policy f) Voyage deviation g) Perils of the sea h) Partial loss of ship and of freight, salvage, general average, particular charges i) Measure of indemnity, total valuation, liability to third parities MODULE- VI INSURANCE AGAINST THIRD PARTY RISKS: a) The Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 (Chapter XI) Nature and scope, persons governed, definition of use, Necessity for insurance against third party risk Requirement of policies and limits of liability Duty to give information as to insurance limitations on third party s rights b) Effect of insolvency or death on claims, insolvency and death of parties, certificate of insurance c) Condition to be satisfied d) Claims tribunal, constitution, functions, application for compensation, who can apply? Procedure and powers of claims tribunal its award. e) Co-operative insurance (Motor Vehicle Rules) To be completed before End Semester Examination: Number of Lectures: 15 *Note: Questions will be asked from all the modules in the End Semester Examination Suggested Books: 1. Murthy & K V S Sarma, Modern Law of Insurance, 4th Edn., ( Butterworth s Wadhwa Publications, 2009, Nagpur). 2. SV Joga Rao, MN Srinivasan s Principles of Insurance Law, Ninth Edition, Lexis Nexis Butterworths Wadhwa, Nagpur, Robert Merkin, COLINVAUX S Law of Insurance, Eighth Edition, Sweet & Maxwell, South Asian Edition, M. N. Sreenivasan, Law and the Life Insurance Contract, 9th Edn, (Butterworth s Wadhwa Nagpur, 2004) 5. Mishra, M.N., Law of Insurance Principles and Practice, 2008, Radhakrishan Prakashan 6. Birds, John, Modern Insurance Law, Universal Publishing Co. (Latest Edition) 7. B.C. Mitra, Law Relating to Marine Insurance. Asia Law House, Hyderabad.

4 Suggested Bare Acts: 1. The Insurance Act, 1938; 2. The Insurance Regulatory Authority Act, The Life Insurance Corporation Act, The Fatal Accidents Act, The Personal Injuries (Compensation Insurance) Act, The Marine Insurance Act, The Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 (Chapter XI) 8. The Consumer Protection Act, 1986

5 Projects topic for 8 th Semester B.A., LL.B (Hons.) Section-A Roll No. 502 Insurance Law: Essential Tenets Project Topic 503 Third Parties Rights against Insurers 505 Fraud at the time of Proposal/Claim payment 506 A Critique on Actuaries, Surveyors, Loss Assessors and Brokers 507 A Critique on IRDA Act Insurance Agents duties, responsibilities and liabilities towards Policy Holders and Insurer. 510 Warranty, Conditions and Stipulations of Insurance Contracts 511 Interpretations of Clauses under Insurance Contracts 512 A Critique on Foreign Exchange Management (Insurance) Regulation 514 Information Technology and Insurance Business 516 Investment Issues of Insurance sector 517 Disclosure and Representaion under Marine Insurance 522 Tax exemption and Insurance Policy 523 IRDA control over sectorwise distribution of Insurance Business 525 State Control of Insurance Business 526 Insurance Product Pricing 527 Compulsory Insurance of Motor Vehicle 528 Role of Proximate Cause in Marine Insurance 529 Assignment of Insurance Policies: Studying the Issues Involved 530 The Insurance Law Contract as a Contract of Good Faith: A Critique 532 Forfeiture under Insurance Law 533 Fraud in Insurance Contracts: A study of judicial pronouncements 534 Special Doctrines under Insurance Law 536 Beneficiaries and Nominees: A study of the issues involved 537 Banks and the Insurance Business: The Indian Position 538 Breach of Warranty, Consitions and stipulations

6 539 The Concept of Reinsurance 541 Life Insurance and Suicide: A Study of the Legal Position and Judicial Pronouncements 542 Challenges under the Insurance Act, Burden of Proof in Insurance Law 544 Indemnity and Insurance: A Comparative Analysis 546 Exclusion Clauses in Insurance Policies 547 A Comparative study of life insurance vis-à-vis non-life insurance contracts 548 Unit-linked Insurance Policy 550 Civil Death in Insurance Contracts 552 Forfeiture and Surrender of life Insurance policy 553 Can life Insurance policy be traded? Legal and Moral Implications 554 Nature and Scope of Fire Insurance 555 Marine Insurance Act: Problems and Perspectives 556 A Critique on Marine Insurance Act Procedure for subscribing Marine Insurance policy 560 A Critique on Cargo Insurance 561 A Critique on Hull Insurance 562 A Critique on Maritime Perils 563 Assessment of Loss and Abandonment in Marine Insurance: A Critique 564 Types of Marine Insurance Policies and Its Usefullness 565 A Critique on Yashaswini Health Insurance Policy 566 A Critique on Travel Insurance 568 A Critique on Micro Insurance 569 A Critique on Postal Insurance 570 Professional Liability Insurance 5447 Insurance service and Consumerism: Studying the Judicial Trend 5451 A Critique on Employees State Insurance Corporation 5463 Motor Accident Claims Tribunal

7 5474 Insurable Interest Project topic for 8 th Semester B.A., LL.B (Hons.) Section-B Roll No. Project Topic 571 Studying the Concept of Premium and Risk 572 Nuclear Liabitily Insurance 573 Group Insurance: A Critique 574 Credit Insurance 575 Repudiations of Insurance contract 576 Control of Public and Private Insurance companies 577 Goods in Transit Insurance 578 Surrender and paid up value of insurance policy 580 Employer's Liability Insurance 581 Plate-Glass Insurance 583 A Critique on Motor Vehicle Insurance 584 Seaworthiness and Marine Insurance Law 585 Life Insurance Policies: Lapse, Revival and Maturity 586 Insurance covering Risk of Storm and Tempest 588 Employee's State Insurance 590 Relationship between Insurance Law and Transfer of Property Law 591 Public Liability Insurance 593 Health (Medi-Claim) Insurance 595 Professional Indemnity Insurance 596 Functions and benefits of Insurance 597 Expanding the Field: New Types of Insurance Policies 598 Double Insurance 601 Duty of Disclosure

8 602 Law relating to Insurance Contract 603 Utmost Good Faith 604 Contribution and Subrogation 605 Construction of Marine Insurance Policy 606 The Concept of Reinsurance 607 Fidelity Insurance 608 Effect of Will on life Insurance Policy Claim under various Personal Laws 609 Loss and Abandonment 610 Right of Insurer on Payment 611 Standard Fire Policy 612 Fire Claims and Amount Recoverable 613 Non-Disclosure and Misrepresentation 614 Formation of Life Insurance Contract 615 Insurable Interest in Life Insurance 616 Contractor's Risk Insurance 617 Consequential Insurance 618 Measure of Indemnity in Marine Insurance 619 Nature of Fire Insurance Contract 620 Plea of Expiry of Insurance 622 Role of Proximate Cuase in Fire Insurance 623 The Insured Perils in Marine Insurance 624 Law governing Motor Insurance 625 Insurance and Contributory Negligence 627 Comparative study of Insurance Saving and Bank Saving 628 Insurance Law as a Tool of Risk Management 629 Insurable interest under life insurance and non-life insurance 630 Proximate cause: Is it interpretation of courts or Is their any clear Definition 631 Role and functioning of the insurance ombudsman

9 632 The Devolopment of Insurance Law: The English and Indian Experiences 633 Burglary and Theft Insurance 634 International Insurance Law Principles 635 Maintenance of Uberimma Fide until what stage in Insurance contracts 636 Insurance Law as a Tool of Risk Management 637 Aviation Insurance 638 Consumer Protection in Insurance Sector 639 A Critique on Health Insurance 640 Insurance ombudsman: A Critique 641 Crop and cattle Insurance: Law and Policy 5414 Burden of Proof in Insurance Disputes