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Image: Kirk Lipsey

Kirk Lipsey

Partner, Corporate Department

New York

Phone: 1(212) 318-6081
Fax: 1(212) 303-7081

Overview

Kirk Lipsey is a partner in the Insurance M&A practice at Paul Hastings and is based in the firm’s New York office. Mr. Lipsey advises on corporate transactions, with an emphasis on mergers and acquisitions and joint venture transactions. His insurance sector transactions have involved the representation of U.S. and non‑U.S. life, annuity, and property and casualty insurers in a wide range of U.S. and cross‑border acquisition and disposition transactions, including stock sales, asset sales, block reinsurance transactions, asset management transactions, and public merger transactions.

Mr. Lipsey also has extensive experience with corporate transactions outside the insurance industry, including on behalf of private equity firms, asset managers, and large financial institutions.

Mr. Lipsey was named “Financial Services Dealmaker of the Year” at The Deal Awards Middle Market in 2020 for his work shaping the global M&A landscape. He is recognized in the 2016‑2023 editions of The Best Lawyers in America and is recommended for Insurance & Reinsurance in the 2018‑2023 editions of Who’s Who Legal.

Mr. Lipsey earned his J.D., cum laude, from Harvard Law School, and his Diploma in Legal Practice and LL.B., with honors, from the University of Glasgow.

Recognitions

  • The Deal Awards Middle Market, “Financial Services Dealmaker of the Year” (2020)
  • The Best Lawyers in America, “Best Lawyer” (2016-2023)
  • Who’s Who Legal, Recommended for Insurance & Reinsurance (2018-2023)

Education

  • Harvard Law School, J.D. (cum laude), 1993
  • University of Glasgow, LL.B. (with honors), 1988

Representations

  • The Prudential Insurance Company of America in the sale of its 70% interest in the Malaysian life insurer Gibraltar BSN Life BHD to FWD Group Holdings Ltd. and other investors.
  • Prudential Financial, Inc. in the sale of a $31 billion portion of its in-force legacy variable annuity block for $2.2 billion to Fortitude Re, Bermuda’s largest multi-line reinsurer.
  • MetLife in its acquisition of Versant Health from an investor group led by Centerbridge Partners for approximately $1.7 billion.
  • The Archipelago Group, a Malaysia-based insurance group, in its acquisition of Front Street Re (Cayman) Ltd., a Cayman Islands reinsurer, from FGL US Holdings Inc.
  • GoldenTree Asset Management in connection with the acquisition by Star Insurance Holdings, an entity formed by GoldenTree, of Syncora Guarantee Inc., a financial guarantee insurer, for $429 million.
  • The Navigators Group in its $2.1 billion sale to The Hartford.
  • PGIM, the investment management arm of Prudential Financial, Inc., in its acquisition of Wadhwani Asset Management, a London-based quantitative macro-focused investment management firm.
  • Kotak Mahindra, BofA Securities, Citigroup, Axis Capital, HDFC Bank, ICICI Securities, IIFL, JM Financial, Motilal Oswal, SBI Capital, and YES Securities in connection with the $370 million initial public offering of equity shares of Aditya Birla Sun Life AMC Limited, the largest non-bank affiliated AMC in India by QAAUM since March 31, 2018, and among the four largest AMCs in India by QAAUM since September 30, 2011.
  • The Prudential Insurance Company of America in its acquisition of Malaysian life insurer Uni.Asia Life Assurance Berhad through a newly formed joint venture with Bank Simpanan Nasional, a Malaysian banking institution.
  • Allstate in its $1 billion acquisition of the Esurance and Answer Financial businesses of White Mountains Insurance Group.
  • Allstate in the $635 million disposition of Allstate Life’s variable annuity business to Prudential Financial, Inc.
  • AXA in the $1.8 billion sale of Winterthur’s U.S. property and casualty insurance operations to QBE.
  • The Delek Group, an Israeli conglomerate, in its $290 million acquisition of the Republic Companies Group, a publicly traded personal and commercial lines holding company.
  • Old Mutual in the sale of its U.S. life insurance and annuity operations for $350 million to affiliates of Harbinger Capital Partners.
  • Prudential Financial, Inc. in the sale of Prudential’s property/casualty operations in combined transactions valued at approximately $673 million.
  • Prudential Financial, Inc. in the combination of the retail brokerage businesses of Prudential and Wachovia.
  • Prudential Financial, Inc. in the sale of Prudential Seguros S.A., its Argentine life and health insurance subsidiary, to Grupo ST S.A., an Argentine financial services holding group.
  • Sun Life Financial in the sale of its Sun Life Retirement Services subsidiary to The Hartford.
  • Unified Grocers in the sale to AmTrust of Springfield Insurance Company, Unified Grocers Insurance Services, and their related insurance operations.
  • A leading U.S. insurance group in connection with joint venture transactions involving the sale of insurance products in Latin America.
  • A leading private equity firm and a multinational bank in connection with their proposed acquisition through reinsurance of the bank- and corporate-owned life insurance (BOLI/COLI) businesses of a leading U.S. insurer.
  • A leading U.S. insurance group in connection with an emerging markets joint venture transaction involving the sale of personal lines insurance products.
  • A leading Japanese life insurer in connection with a proposed minority “rescue” investment in a U.S. life insurer.

Matters may have been completed before joining Paul Hastings.


Languages

English


Admissions

New York Bar


Education

Harvard Law School, J.D. 1993

University of Glasgow, LL.B. 1988