The Corporate Personality and Piercing the Corporate Veil

Concept of Corporate Personality

A company is a legal person, since in the eyes of law it is capable of having legal rights and  obligations just like a natural person. Like any other person it can acquire and own property, transfer  property, enter into contracts and sue and be sued in its own name. Being a legal person, a company has a  separate legal entity, a personality distinct from its members or shareholders.

The concept of separate entity of a company was established in the celebrated case of Salomon Vs  Salomon & Co. Ltd. The facts of the case are that one Salomon, a boot manufacturer, formed a company  with himself, his wife, and daughter and four sons as the sole shareholders.… Read the rest

Legal Aspects of Marine Insurance

A contract of marine insurance is a contract whereby the insurer undertakes to indemnify the  insured, against marine losses, that is to say, the losses incidental to marine adventure. It is a contract of indemnity. It is a contract ‘uberrimae fidei”. It must have insurable interest. The doctrine of  subrogation applies to it.

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  • Marine Insurance
  • Marine Insurance Claims

Marine Adventure: There is a marine adventure when;

  1. Any ship, goods or movable property(i.e. insurable property) is exposed to maritime perils;
  2. The earning or acquisition of any freight, passage money, commission, profit or other pecuniary  benefit, or the security for any advances, loans or disbursements is endangered by the exposure of  insurable property to maritime perils;
  3. Any inability to a third party maybe incurred by the owner of, or other person interested in, insurable  property by reason of maritime perils.
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Fire Insurance – Definition, Characteristics and Policy Types

Fire insurance is the oldest form of insurance. In the early development of industrial society, fire was the main source of energy. The industrial or commercial activities were not possible without fire. However, there was a need to insure the risk of uncontrolled or uncertain fire. Fire insurance is designed to provide for financial loss to property due to fire and a few other related hazards. The property that can be covered under fire insurance includes Building, Machinery, Equipments, Accessories, Goods, Raw Materials, Electrical Installation of building, Residential houses, Furniture and fittings, Pipelines located outside and inside the building.

A contract of fire insurance is a contract whereby the insurer undertakes, in consideration of the  premium paid, to make good any loss or damage caused by fire during a specific period.… Read the rest

Group Insurance

Under the  Group Insurance Scheme, the principle involved is more or less same as in the case of Life Insurance but  the scheme is taken for a group of persons employed in an undertaking. In this scheme, the contract of life  insurance can be summed up as an undertaking to pay specified amounts of money on the happening of  certain contingencies in exchange for a previously agreed series of payments called premiums. This  contract is between an employer and the Insurance Company and the contingencies where the death of  employee in service or on survival to the retirement date. In the latter event the employer would possibly  want some pension to be given for the post retirement life time of the employee.… Read the rest

Re-Insurance and Double Insurance

Re-insurance and double insurance contracts are two different concepts and are detailed here under. They both are similar to the contract of insurance, however, they have their own nature and the contract goes on as per the requirement.

Re-insurance

Every insurer has a limit to the risk that he can undertake. If at any time a profitable venture  comes his way, he may insure it even if the risk involved is beyond his capacity. Then in order to  safeguard his own interest, he may insure the same risk either wholly or partially with other insurers. This  is called re-insurance. The reason for re-insurance like the reason for original insurance is the necessity  of spreading the risk.… Read the rest

Fundamental Principles of Insurance Contract

The Contract of Insurance is a contract whereby a person undertakes to indemnify another  against a loss arising on the happening of an event or to pay a sum of money on the happening of an  event. The person who insures is called “Insurer”. The person who effects the insurance is called the  “Insured” or “Assured”. The price for the risk undertaken by the insurer and paid by the insured to the  insurer is called “Premium” and the document which contains the contract of insurance is called “Policy”.

Following are the general principles of contract of insurance:

  1. Uberrimae Fidei: A contract of insurance is a contract uberrimae fidei, i.e.
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