PRACTICE NOTES
What is After-the-Event insurance?
In litigation, the losing side is usually ordered to meet part of the winner’s legal costs (known as adverse costs). This creates particular difficulties for insolvency practitioners (IPs) who, when pursuing claims, face potential cost exposure and, without creditors’ consent, often have little or no practical recourse to the insolvent estate to satisfy any adverse costs liability. After-the-Event (ATE) insurance exists to address this risk: if an IP advances a claim that ultimately fails, the ATE insurer will pay the adverse costs as a claim under the policy, normally up to a fixed limit and subject to the policy’s terms and conditions.
What will ATE insurance cover?
The primary role of ATE insurance is to insure against adverse costs. Cover can also be taken for the risk of not recovering one’s own disbursements, including expert reports, valuations and search fees. Although an
Restructuring & Insolvency