The death of the Orient-Express: a new train of thought on proximate cause?

On 15 January 2021, the Supreme Court held in the FCA Test Case that the Orient-Express Hotels case had been wrongly decided. Proximate cause has long been an issue that the courts have grappled with and as a result this has caused confusion and uncertainty throughout the insurance industry. In this webinar, Jeff Heasman will use his vast experience as a lecturer in tort law and insurance law to strip proximate cause back to the basic principles, trace its development up until the Supreme Court decision on 15 January 2021 and then provide views on what impact the decision will have on underwriting considerations going forward.

About the speaker:

Jeff Heasman is a professional trainer who specialises in communication skills within the insurance and financial services sector. Jeff is a certified practitioner in Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) and a professional member of the Academy of Modern Applied Psychology.

In addition, Jeff holds a bachelor’s degree in law from the University of Glamorgan and a master of laws degree from Swansea University, as well as a postgraduate certificate in teaching English language to adults.

Jeff spent many years in practice as a litigation executive, dealing with cases up to and including the Court of Appeal in London (England v IBC Vehicles Ltd) and as a senior liability adjuster at Crawford and Company. Subsequently he was Dean of the Faculty of Law at Cavendish University in Zambia, has been a tutor at Swansea University and a lecturer in international negotiation skills to MBA students at ESIC University in Spain.

Jeff now combines his experience and expert knowledge to provide communication skills training to prestigious organisations, companies and individuals throughout the world.

Learning Objectives

• Understand the principles of proximate cause and the “but for” test.
• Recognise why the Supreme Court thought it right to overrule the decision in Orient-Express Hotels Ltd.
• Implement a strategy around how the judgment of the Supreme Court will impact underwriting considerations going forward.