RPC's burgeoning Insurance Group hires FI and D&O specialist

FI and D&O liability insurance specialist Mike Newham joins from Mayer Brown

22 new Partners across its four international offices have joined the firm's Insurance Group in the last 24 months, combination of strategic lateral hires and internal promotions

International law firm RPC has hired Financial Institutions (FI) and Directors' and Officers' (D&O) liability insurance specialist Mike Newham to join the firm's leading Insurance Group in London as Partner. 

Mike is a solicitor advocate and joins RPC from Mayer Brown where he specialised in coverage and professional indemnity (PI) defence and regulatory work. He starts at RPC on 6 June 2022.

He will join the firm's FI/D&O team, which has acted for insurers in relation to most of the major market losses of the last two decades, including for insurers of the large clearing banks, global investment banks, fund managers, hedge funds and global insurers, as well as their directors, to exploit further market opportunities.

The team is part of RPC's Insurance Group, which last year launched Global Access Lawyers alongside five other leading insurance law firms to offer insurers access to more joined up global claims' solutions. 

Zimbabwean-born Mike trained and qualified at Barlow Lyde & Gilbert, before moving to Mayer Brown in 2010. He is described as "thorough", "detailed" and "great with thinking strategically" in Legal 500 2022.

Mike routinely acts for many leading FI/D&O insurance stalwarts and has provided coverage advice in many high-profile matters, including those arising out of the Iceland banking collapse and Madoff fraud.  

He has also advised on the defence of claims against a variety of professionals - primarily lawyers, auditors and accountants - and on investigations by various professional regulators, including the SRA, ICAEW and FRC.

Simon Laird, RPC's Global Head of Insurance, said: "Mike's extensive experience, in-depth knowledge and personable approach are an exciting addition to our leading complex coverage disputes team. His hire is indicative of our focus on scaling up with high-calibre, collaborative and commercially thinking lawyers, who can best support our global insurance client base in the UK and internationally." 

Adding to this, Managing Partner James Miller said: "Mike has a solid reputation as a leading insurance lawyer and is admired by his clients and the wider legal market. He is committed, collaborative and will doubtless prove a great asset to our leading insurance group."

Commenting on joining RPC, Mike Newham said: "The opportunity to join RPC, a firm that is certainly moving in the right direction with bold growth plans, is one that is hugely exciting. I'm looking forward to capitalising on existing client relationships and helping to grow the firm's established reputation in FI and D&O coverage work."

Mike's arrival means the firm has welcomed 22 new Partners to its Insurance Group in the last two years across its UK, Hong Kong and Singapore offices, through a combination of strategic lateral hires and promotion of internal talent. 

The hire comes shortly after the Insurance Group promoted Fiona Hahlo, Sian Morgan, George Smith, Alex Almaguer and Felicity Strong to the Partnership. RPC now has 123 Partners across the firm.