The Gazette 1991

GAZETTE

NOVEMBER 1991

direct writing captive is given one licence for all lines of business for which it has applied. If it wants to add other lines at a future date, a new application and authorisation are necessary. Currently the captives in the IFSC are writing property, liability, marine, aviation, motor, business i n t e r r up t i on, transport, storage, fidelity and extended warranty. The solvency requirement is set according to EC regulation which requires approx ima t e ly a 4:1 premium to capital and surplus ratio. The level of guarantee funds, the part of the solvency margin that must remain in liquid form is also set by EC Regulation and amounts to 1/3 of the solvency margin (subject to minimums of ECU 4 0 0 , 0 00 liability, credit and suretyship, ECU 300,000 property and f i nanc i al loss and ECU 200,000 miscellaneous property and legal expenses). The reporting requirements include annual audited accounts and unaudited interim reports during start-up. An annual board meeting in Ireland is required. There is very little regulation of reinsurance captives. The only rules that apply now are that such companies must notify the Minister for Industry and Commerce in advance of their intention to carry on business, and to submit annual audited accounts in summary format. There is no maximum premium to capital ratio (solvency ratio) and no risk to capital ratio. However, reinsurance companies have been included in the EC's draft directive on non-life insurance companies, under which all pro- cedures and forms will be stand- ardised and will include information on how assets are held, which is not now part of their submission. Conclusion The establishment of the IFSC will lead to a major expansion of the incorporation of captive insurance 332

companies in Ireland. The attract- ion has its foundation in the special position accorded to Ireland by the EC. The industry is bound by many EC rules and standards. If EC regulation is not strictly applied Dublin may be viewed as having foregone its right to special treatment let alone an extension of it. It is therefore of importance that exact compliance is insisted upon.

The captive Insurance industry rep- resents one of the major opportuni- ties which has been presented to the legal profession by the IFSC, indi- cating the growth in importance of the commercial sector. * Muiris O'Ceidigh was awarded the J.P. O'Reilly Memorial Scholarship in Commercial Law by the Law Society in October, 1990. •

1990 A Busy Year for the Law Reform Commission

1990 was another busy year for the Law Reform Commission which has just published its Twelfth Report outlining its achievements during that year and legislative action taken on foot of its recommendations. By 31 December, 1990, the Commission had, since its inception in 1977, formulated and submitted to the Taoiseach and Attorney General 34 Reports, 11 Working Papers and 2 Consultation Papers. The main features of the Commission's work during 1990 were a report on Child Sexual Abuse (LRC 33-1990), a Report on Sexual Offences against the Mentally Handicapped (LRC 33-1990), and a report on Oath and Affirmations (LRC 34-1990). During 1990, a working group on Conveyancing and Land Law con- tinued its work on the identification of anomalies in the law and proposals for improvement, and a report is due for publication later this year (1991). During the year the Commission also examined and made recom- mendations on the law of defama- tion, criminal libel, and contempt of court and this has resulted in the recent publication of consultation papers on these topics (see also page 319). Work also continued on an examination of the feasibility of seizure of proceeds of crime (a report was published in January,

1991 (LRC 35-91); on the prepara- tion of a discussion paper on the law relating to larceny, fraud and other offences contained in the Larceny Act, .1916, and the preparation of a discussion paper on the rule against hearsay in criminal cases. Family law has been the subject of much examination by the Com- mission (some 6 reports in all). In 1990 the Commission established an ad-hoc advisory committee to consider the question of the best type of judicial or courts structure appropriate to deal with the dif- ferent matters which fall under the general heading of family law, and the work of this committee is proceeding. 1990 saw many of the Commis- sion's recommendations being incorporated in legislation, most notably the Criminal Law (Rape) Amendment Act, 1990 which implemented most of the Commis- sion's recommendations in its report on Rape and Allied Offences (LRC 24-1988). The Commission notes, however, that the Larceny Act, 1990 differs in many respects from the Commis- sion's recommendations in regard to handling unlawfully obtained property (LRC 23-87). Copies of the Twelfth Report are available from the Law Reform Commission, Ardilaun House, St. Stephen's Green, Dublin 2. Price £1.50. •