Reinsurance

Hinshaw attorneys have for many years been involved in cutting-edge issues involving reinsurance and reinsurance dispute resolution. Through our long-standing, extensive relationships with both insurers and reinsurers, we have a unique ability to understand and address their oftentimes complex transactions and agreements. The diverse knowledge and experience of our attorneys positions us to address almost any issue that may be raised in a reinsurance litigation or arbitration.

With a nationwide network of offices in locations such as Boston, New York, Chicago, Phoenix, Los Angeles, Miami and San Francisco, we are positioned to represent clients in reinsurance disputes all over the country.

Among our attorneys’ successes in the area of reinsurance dispute resolution are:

• recovery of millions from a reinsurer on successive facultative certificates reinsuring claims-made professional liability policies
• winning the extraordinary remedy of rescission of a reinsurance contract on three separate occasions: once in a jury trial, once in an arbitration, and once from the bench
• securing vacatur of an arbitral award based on the panel's "gross error of law"
• convincing a federal district court that, despite follow-the-fortunes provisions in two reinsurance contracts, the reinsurer was not obligated to cover ECO payments the ceding company had made to its policyholder arising out of the ceding company’s bad faith
• collecting millions from reinsurers located in Europe, Asia and Central and South America
• demonstrating to a federal Circuit Court of Appeals that a reinsurance dispute had to be litigated, not arbitrated
• persuading federal courts, including a federal Circuit Court of Appeals, that sovereign immunity was inapplicable in private reinsurance arbitrations
• establishing before a tribunal of a state insurance department that a liquidated entity was not the reinsurer, thus paving the way for the cedent’s collection in full from its true reinsurer

We provide a wide range of services, to ceding companies, reinsurers, brokers and others, involving complex and sophisticated reinsurance-related matters, including:

• the formation and capitalization of reinsurance companies and captives
• drafting, negotiating and reviewing reinsurance treaties and other contracts
• advising and counseling on allocation issues
• managing insolvencies, liquidations and rehabilitations

The Hinshaw Advantage
Many Hinshaw insurance services group attorneys have worked in-house and bring with them valuable insights into the insurance and reinsurance business. Besides delivering advice and representation that helps our clients achieve their objectives, we are active leaders in both the legal and insurance industries. Individually and collectively, we:

• Hold leadership roles in legal and industry organizations
• Lead educational seminars for clients
• Participate in firm-wide Insurance Services Group monthly meetings in which we:
  • share information about cases
  • identify trends that we see 
  • detail strategies that work for clients
• Publish single- and multiple-state compendia and surveys on various issues, including bad faith and consent judgments, class actions, coverage for construction defect and property damage claims, and punitive damages
• Speak at national and local industry associations
• Write articles for publication in industry and legal periodicals

Our insurance and reinsurance clients benefit not only from Hinshaw’s well-informed Insurance Services Group attorneys, but also from the firm’s other unique offerings. In addition to holding an annual Insurance Services Symposium, which is attended by hundreds of senior decision makers in the insurance and reinsurance industry, we provide advantages such as:

• The assignment of at least one partner to all matters, with younger attorneys, whose efforts are closely monitored by senior attorneys, brought in to achieve efficiency
• Attorneys licensed to practice in nearly every state and federal court, and experienced in handling matters in administrative tribunals, trial and appellate courts, and inter-insurer arbitrations and other alternative dispute resolution forums
• Lawyers with expertise in areas including business organizations, employment law, governmental relations, bankruptcy and tax matters and the many other issues affecting insurance companies
• Personal and dedicated attention to our clients