Insurance

We are a trusted advisor to the world's leading insurers and reinsurers on complex transactions, disputes, financing, regulatory and commercial matters. We offer a global team of over 200 fee-earners providing first class domestic and cross-border advice across the world's main financial centres and the emerging markets.

Through our extensive global network of offices in Europe, the Americas, Asia Pacific, the Middle East and Africa, we can offer an ideal ability to assist insurance companies throughout their global operations and on their international expansion plans.

Our integrated cross-practice team includes sector experts from across our corporate and M&A, regulatory, banking & finance, capital markets, dispute resolution, antitrust, tax, real estate, IT/IP pensions and employment teams.

Reputation for acting on ground-breaking, first of a kind mandates

As a highly experienced practice we work at the forefront of the market advising clients on the latest developments and issues facing the sector. We can offer clients support across the full range of their legal needs, including on:

Large cross-border M&A transactions
Complex reorganisation and restructuring
Longevity risk transfers / bulk annuity buy-in
Alternative risk transfer arrangements including Insurance Linked Securities (ILS), Value-in-Force transactions and derivatives
Global and local market regulatory enforcement
Major insurance/reinsurance disputes
Distribution, outsourcing and other commercial contracts

Trusted advisor to the world's leading insurance and reinsurance companies

We advise clients from across the global life, general and reinsurance markets including Admiral, Allianz, Assicurazioni Generali, Aspen, AXA XL, Chubb, Domestic & General, Legal & General, LV=, Willis Towers Watson, MetLife, and Swiss Re. We also advise insurance brokers, London Market participants, Bermudan based insurers, mutuals, run-off specialists and banks as counterparties to insurers.

Band 1
Global: Multi-Jurisdictional: Insurance in Chambers & Partners Global 2023 (Chambers & Partners)
Band 1
Global: Multi-Jurisdictional: Insurance in Chambers & Partners Global 2022 (Chambers & Partners)
"The Clifford Chance insurance corporate team are second to none. A wonderful group of intelligent, motivated, dedicated and expert professionals."
Legal 500 2022 (Legalese, Ltd)
"Their team is modern and diverse"
Legal 500 2022 (Legalese, Ltd)
"They have tremendous knowledge and a great capacity to execute deals."
Chambers 2021 (Chambers & Partners)
Insurance Legal Firm of the Year and Deal of the Year
Reactions London Market Awards 2019
Insurance Legal Advisor of the Year
Insurance Day London Market Awards 2019

Client experience

M&A

LV= on its joint venture with Allianz, creating the UK's third largest personal insurer with over £1.7 billion annual premium income. The transaction valued the LV= general insurance business at £1.02 billion. Clifford Chance won the Legal Business Insurance Deal of the Year 2018 for this project.
Jardine Lloyd Thompson Group plc on its recommended £4.3billion takeover by MMC Treasury Holdings (UK) Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of insurance broking and advisory company Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. ("MMC"), listed on NYSE.
Swiss Re on the sale of the ReAssure Group to Phoenix Group for £3.2 billion

Reorganisations / restructuring

Insurance clients Chubb, AXA XL, AXA Partners, Admiral, Swiss Re and Domestic & General on their Brexit contingency plans
Chubb Group on the integration of its key operating companies in Europe by way of portfolio transfers in UK and Ireland and a cross border merger, impacting around 45million policyholders
AXA SA on the integration of the XL Group and global restructuring of the AXA XL commercial lines business following AXA's €15.3billion acquisition of XL

Longevity risk transfers / bulk annuity buy-in

Legal & General in a trailblazing £4.4bn pensioner bulk annuity buy-in with British Airways’ Airways Pension Scheme which will cover circa 60% of all pensioner liabilities
Legal & General on the £1.1 billion pension de-risking deal with AIB Group

ILS and alternative risk arrangements

Neon Underwriting, SCOR, Brit Ltd and Pool Re on their UK insurance-linked securities (ILS) projects
Transaction counsel on the formation and capital raise of alternative capital and total return vehicles including Watford Re Ltd. (initial capital raise of US$1.1 billion), Harrington Re Ltd. (initial capital raise of US$600 million), KaylaRe Ltd. (initial capital raise of US$620 million), Premia Reinsurance Ltd. (initial capital raise of US$510 million), and Fidelis Insurance Holdings Limited (initial capital raise of US$1.5 billion)

Distribution, outsourcing and other commercial contracts

ING Group on a global partnership with AXA to provide insurance products and related services through a central digital insurance platform

Insurer resolution: how do the new UK and EU regimes compare?

Both the UK and EU have proposed new resolution regimes for failing (re)insurers based on international standards and their existing regimes for bank resolution. As a result, the proposed UK Insurer Resolution Regime (IRR) and the proposed EU Insurance Recovery and Resolution Directive (IRRD) have much in common, albeit with some key differences.