Insurance & Reinsurance

Insurance and reinsurance are two of our strengths. We’re major international players in both and have advised on most of the leading cases in the development of insurance and reinsurance law.

Our clients include insurers, brokers and buyers. Whether it’s contentious or non-contentious, straightforward or complex, we offer all the legal services required. Our expertise in the field is recognised throughout the industry, both in the UK and internationally.

You’ll work on all aspects of insurance and reinsurance law, including marine and non-marine, regulatory, energy, aviation, political risks, personal injury and professional indemnity.

Joe O’Keeffe | Partner

LLB & LLM Queen Mary and Westfield College, London | LPC City of London Polytechnic | Joined the firm in 1991

 

Whilst I was in the middle of a shipping and insurance LLM course, I met the in-house lawyer of a London Greek shipowner. He told me that if I wanted to do contentious work in the shipping and international trade arena, Ince was the firm to join. He was right.

When I started at Ince, my key interests were marine insurance and dry shipping – reflecting my Master’s course – and I had a very wide range of work across these two spheres. I was given a lot of responsibility from the beginning, but there was always the safety net of a partner to help out if needed.

I was seconded to our Singapore office in 1997 for what was supposed to be a three year secondment, but I enjoyed the challenge so much that I stayed for nearly seven years! My practice there covered wet and dry shipping, marine insurance, energy, international sale of goods and non-contentious work.

I returned to London in late 2003 with the specific intention of focusing on marine and energy insurance, which I have done. At the moment I have many interesting cases in this area. For example, I am representing certain London market and foreign insurers in connection with the explosion at the Buncefield oil storage depot in 2005 – the biggest explosion in Europe since World War II. The incident has given rise to claims running to many hundreds of millions of pounds. 

I also act for some of Europe’s largest electricity producers in relation to their shipping and supply requirements. I still do a good deal of shipping and

trade work as well and, as a result, I am often consulted by colleagues in the firm in relation to things such as coal and biomass trading.

  

Lorraine Fernandes | Second Year Trainee

LLB Kent University | LPC Cardiff University | Joined the firm in 2005

I initially came to the firm on the two-week trainee recruitment placement scheme and I loved it. I got a taste for the work and for the people. It was hard work but also good fun, and you don’t always get that.

When I joined the firm I was given work that pushed me but which didn’t leave me wondering what I was supposed to be doing. They give you as much work and responsibility as they think you can handle. It’s up to you to show that you can.

Four months after I joined, I was in the thick of a three-week arbitration hearing for a huge insurance case. It was very exciting and challenging. It was a great experience.

After that I went straight into a marine insurance shipping case, where containers had been lost overboard during heavy weather. I was assisting the partner. It was quite a big case considering I had only been at the firm about six months. I had to draft pleadings and witness statements, attend conferences with counsel and clients and help to finalise experts’ reports.

You get a real opportunity at Ince to show what you can do and the work is always varied. Sure, there are times when you’re bundling documents, but there are also times when the partner is relying on you to give them an answer on a point.