General Course Information
1.1 Course details
| Course code: | LLAW6107 and JDOC6107 |
| Course name: | Insurance Law |
| Programme offered under: | LLM Programme / JD Programme |
| Semester: | Second |
| Prerequisites: | Law of Contract |
| Credit point value: | 9 credits / 6 credits |
1.2 Course description
Insurance is as old as human civilisation. The Babylonian Code of Hammurabi, written almost four thousand years ago, describes a form of cover known today as bottomry. The first academic text on marine insurance was compiled in 1488 by Pedro de Santarém. Over the centuries, the basic tenets and practice of insurance have developed into a global business with assets in the region of US $44 trillion. Premiums, claims and the pooling of risk are as familiar to modern consumers as they were to the patrons of Edward Lloyd’s Coffee House. As the practice of insurance evolves, so does its law and regulation. Recent changes include legislation such as the UK’s Insurance Act 2015 and regulatory initiatives such as the Hong Kong Insurance Authority’s ‘regulatory sandbox’.
This course covers the following subjects: The Nature of Insurance; Insurable Interest and Third Parties; Utmost Good Faith; Insurance Terms; Losses and Claims; The Rights of Insurers; Insurance Intermediaries; Liability Insurance; Reinsurance; Marine Insurance; and Chinese Insurance Law.
1.3 Course teachers
| Name | E-mail address | Office | Consultation | |
| Course convenor | Gary Meggitt | garym@hku.hk | CCT 907 | By email |
Learning Outcomes
2.1 Course Learning Outcomes (CLOs) for this course
CLO 1 Describe and explain the various theories of insurance law.
CLO 2 Use relevant information about insurance contract to critically examine the limitations of the theories.
CLO 3 Apply knowledge and understanding of insurance law to adapt to new and uncertain situations and problems of insurance contracts.
CLO 4 Demonstrate an awareness of the impact of insurance within the broader economic, environmental and socio-cultural context.
2.2 LLM and JD Programme Learning Outcomes (PLOs)
Please refer to the following link:
LLM – https://course.law.hku.hk/llm-plo/
JD – https://course.law.hku.hk/jd-plo/
2.3 Programme Learning Outcomes to be achieved in this course
| PLO A | PLO B | PLO C | PLO D | PLO E | PLO F | |
| CLO 1 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| CLO 2 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| CLO 3 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| CLO 4 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Assessment(s)
3.1 Assessment Summary
| Assessment task | Due date | Weighting | Feedback method* | Course learning outcomes |
| Class participation | N/A | 25% | 1, 2, 3, 4 | |
| Take home exam | 23 May 2025 | 75% | 1, 2, 3, 4 |
| *Feedback method (to be determined by course teacher) | |
| 1 | A general course report to be disseminated through Moodle |
| 2 | Individual feedback to be disseminated by email / through Moodle |
| 3 | Individual review meeting upon appointment |
| 4 | Group review meeting |
| 5 | In-class verbal feedback |
3.2 Assessment Detail
A take-home research paper on a subject to be advised by the course convenor(s).
3.3 Grading Criteria
Please refer to the following link: https://www.law.hku.hk/_files/law_programme_grade_descriptors.pdf
Learning Activities
4.1 Learning Activity Plan
| Seminar: | 3 hours / week for 12 teaching weeks |
| Private study time: | 9.5 hours / week for 12 teaching weeks |
Remarks: the normative student study load per credit unit is 25 ± 5 hours (ie. 150 ± 30 hours for a 6-credit course), which includes all learning activities and experiences within and outside of classroom, and any assessment task and examinations and associated preparations.
4.2 Details of Learning Activities
To be advised by course convenor(s).
Learning Resources
5.1 Resources
| Reading materials: | Reading materials are posted on Moodle |
| Core reading list: | TBA |
| Recommended reading list: | TBA |
5.2 Links
Please refer to the following link: http://www.law.hku.hk/course/learning-resources/