Bank of Credit and Commerce International (BCCI) and Equitable Life made 2005 a landmark year for financial litigation. Expensive, protracted and unproductive legal action involving these institutions proved to be a complete waste of time and money.
Troubled mutual insurer Equitable Life brought two cases: against former auditor, Ernst & Young and, separately, against 15 of its former directors. The society hoped to secure £4.3bn for policyholders. Labelled by Mark Hapgood QC, counsel for Ernst & Young, as “the biggest climbdown in English legal history”, the claims were dropped without a penny in compensation. Total costs to date exceed £100m.
