The provisions of the Maltese Civil Code on the contract of life insurance : a comparative analysis

Abstract

As this is the first analysis of these new provisions of Maltese law on life insurance, the title of this dissertation was left broad and inclusive. Therefore, all the provisions of the Act and the issues they raise could be discussed. However, due to the constraints of space some issues are reviewed in greater detail than others and some issues of detail are left to be analysed by others in the future. This is especially so with regard to group policies, private international law issues, and the fiscal treatment of life insurance policies which had to be left out. Hopefully this dissertation will create a basis for further, more detailed analysis on the many issues raised. Due to the fact that I spent four months living and studying in Rome this year as part of an Erasmus exchange program1, I had access to many resources dealing with Italian law. For this reason I opted to concentrate on Italian law and sources in my comparative analysis. I also researched English and French law however they do not feature as prominently throughout the discussion. English and French law and doctrine are naturally still important, both historically and in the formation of the new provisions of Act XI of 2005.