A lawyer with a unique understanding of the insurance and reinsurance market derived from 39 years’ experience, Clive is an acknowledged thought leader in the field with an unparalleled understanding of the commercial and strategic background to the insurance and reinsurance markets.
Clive O’Connell has practised in the area of insurance and reinsurance law since he qualified in 1982 and spent over 25 years fine-tuning his expertise at Barlow Lyde & Gilbert.
His experience lies predominantly in the area of dispute resolution, having handled major and complex disputes in litigation, arbitration and mediation in England as well as handling cases in court and arbitration in jurisdictions as diverse as the USA, France, Sweden, Switzerland, Jamaica, Sweden and Hong Kong.
Clive has advised clients on all aspects of reinsurance and complex risk transfer mechanisms including alternative risk transfer (ART) and insurance-linked securities (ILS). Utilising the experience gained in dispute resolution he has worked with clients on the wordings of major reinsurance programmes and on the creation of innovative products and risk solutions. He has been involved in every aspect of runoff solutions for the insurance and reinsurance industry.
Clive is General Counsel and on the Board of the International Insurance Society and is a regular speaker and writer on industry subjects. He is recognised for his understanding of the commercial and strategic realities of the market as much as for his knowledge of the law that relates to it. He was named one of the 50 most influential people in the world of insurance by Insurance Day in December 2014. He is also acknowledged as an expert in his field by all of the independent legal directories.
Clive is a non-executive director of Twelve Capital UK Limited, the ILS investment fund manager and non-executive chairman Yokahu, a parametric insurance underwriter.
Clive has been involved in many of the most significant reinsurance cases on both sides of the Atlantic over the past 39 years as well as being involved in the development of many new products, particularly in the ILS, ART and financial reinsurance areas.