What’s new: In brief (October 31, 2004)

The Supreme Court of Canada ruled that directors should not be held liable to creditors for decisions made in good faith prior to a bankruptcy, even if those decisions may have contributed to the company’s demise. In the case, in which law firm Lavery de Billy represent insurer Chubb on behalf of the directors of Peoples Dept. Stores, the Quebec Superior Court had ruled that the duty to creditors should be recognized, based on precedent in Great Britain, Australia and New Zealand. The Supreme Court upheld this view in Peoples v Wise.

Updating the issue of broker commissions, the U.S. Senate is scheduled to hold hearings on the controversy in mid-November. At the same time, Standard & Poor’s has put a negative watch on AIG and ACE, two of the companies cited in the civil charges filed against broker Marsh by New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer relative to commission and sales practices. While affirming the ratings of the two insurers, S&P notes that the commission controversy is unlikely to impact performance, but may have an impact in terms of reputation, and litigation costs.

Manitoba Public Insurance (MPI) is raising awareness of the dangers of wildlife collisions for motorists. In 2003, MPI paid out $20.1 million on 10,475 claims as a result of motorists hitting wildlife and almost 300 people were injured in such collisions. The month of November was the worst, with more than 1,600 wildlife collisions. And so far this fall, two fatalities have resulted from deer on highways.