Established insurance and reinsurance expert joins Keystone Law

Ex-Cooley Partner James Crabtree has joined Keystone Law’s growing insurance team.

Recognised by leading legal directory Chambers & Partners as “strategic and business orientated”, James has advised numerous major participants in the worldwide insurance and reinsurance markets on claims, coverage questions and disputes, and on the contractual terms and conditions of many varieties of insurance and reinsurance cover. He has also advised corporate buyers of insurance on contract terms and conditions and handled coverage disputes.

Over the years, his work has entailed dealing with major international market loss events and situations, such as Piper Alpha, Phillips Petroleum, the 2011 Japanese tsunami, the 2011 New Zealand earthquakes, and the stream of exposures resulting from asbestos-related diseases and environmental pollution.

His work covers both property and liability coverage and he has dealt with complex insurance situations and exposures arising from significant, widely reported events affecting the financial markets, such as the collapse of Barings Bank, the collapse of WorldCom, film finance transactions, the buyback of stock option grants and the Argentine economic crisis of 2002.

He advises on the management of insurance and reinsurance portfolios in runoff and has recently advised on contingency planning in preparation for the UK’s exit from the European Union.

James also handles contractual disputes in other areas of commerce and has managed substantial High Court litigation, appeal proceedings, arbitration processes and various ADR procedures.

Keystone CEO and founder James Knight said:

“James is a recognised insurance law expert, whose experience will be a tremendous asset to the team as well as an invaluable source of additional support for both existing and future clients. His expertise, particularly within complex, international, major loss situations, will be a clear differentiator for us as we continue to build on our offering in this area.”

James added:

“I’m delighted to be joining Keystone. The firm has an impressive and growing reputation in the insurance field and for handling complex disputes across many sectors. It also offers strong capabilities in related practice areas, such as corporate transactional work. I look forward to working with the team.”