Susie Wakefield > Shoosmiths LLP > London, England > Lawyer Profile
Shoosmiths LLP Offices
No 1 Bow Churchyard
LONDON
EC4 9DQ
England
- Firm Profile
- Go to...
Susie Wakefield
Work Department
Partner, Commercial
Position
Susie Wakefield is head of commercial insurance and specialises in commercial litigation, arbitration and (re)insurance. She also advises clients in the energy and commodities sectors and has represented clients in complex, multimillion-dollar disputes with multijurisdictional aspects. Susie has practised in New York, Bermuda and London and has advised clients in litigation in federal and state courts in NY, the Supreme Court of Bermuda, and the High Court. Susie has also handled disputes under the Arbitration Act 1996, the Federal Arbitration Act, the Bermuda International Conciliation and Arbitration Act 1993 and the UNCITRAL Model Law as well as ad hoc arbitrations and under various institutional rules in the UK, Europe, and the US.
Susie advises on a broad array of claims and coverage disputes, including issues arising in connection with Bermuda Form policies and reinsurance arrangements involving captives and segregated account companies. She has advised on complex policy wording reviews; significant P&C losses; claims involving allegations of fraud, misrepresentation and nondisclosure; breach of warranty claims; claims for contribution from co-insurers; and insolvency-related matters. Her work spans many lines of risk including: CGL, property, business interruption, construction, energy, space, marine cargo, financial lines including D&O, E&O/PI, financial institutions PI, pensions trustees liability, POSI and liability including product liability, product recall, public liability, employers’ liability, IT, media, IP, and cyber.
Susie qualified in the UK in 1997, New York (2003) and Bermuda (2008).
Susie co-authored the ‘Lloyd’s and London Market’ chapter of volume seven of the New Appleman on Insurance Law Library Edition, 2012.
Susie is ranked in both Chambers UK and Chambers Global 2021 where she is described as “very responsive, detailed and picks up on issues quickly” and “really enjoyable to work with-clients are better for having her involved”. Susie is listed in the International Who’s Who of Insurance & Reinsurance Lawyers and Women in Business Law.
.
Career
Susie joined Shoosmiths in 2017 from Taylor Wessing LLP where she was a partner in the disputes & investigations team and head of insurance (London). She practised at LeBoeuf in New York for 7 years
Lawyer Rankings
London > Insurance > Insurance and reinsurance litigation
(Leading individuals)The triple-qualified (England, New York and Bermuda) Susie Wakefield heads up Shoosmiths LLP‘s insurance team and is a regular port of call for direct insurers, excess carriers, reinsurers and Lloyd’s coverholders, as well as intermediaries and policyholders. She boasts a strong offering in financial lines, construction, property and casualty, marine and cyber insurance. Other recommended inviduals include Paul Eccles and Richard Marshall for their advice on policy coverage disputes, with particular expertise in those involving public liability.
London > Dispute resolution > Commercial litigation: mid-market
Fielding ‘an excellent team with terrific strength in depth‘, Shoosmiths LLP undertakes large numbers of major commercial disputes. Examples include shareholder conflicts, contract breaches, negligence, and fraud and misrepresentation matters. The practice is also experienced in breaches of warranty claims following M&A transactions. Bill Molloy acts in disputes concerning outsourcing, large-scale procurements, shareholder conflicts, and commercial issues, which frequently comprise multi-jurisdictional elements; Susie Wakefield handles a range of commercial disputes, in addition to leading the commercial insurance team; Daren Allen is an expert in fraud, bribery, corruption, and money laundering; and Elliot Bishop is ‘a standout lawyer‘. At associate level, principal Matthew MacLachlan leads the firm’s contentious privacy offering, and senior John Shirley-Rakhra maintains a broad disputes practice. During 2022, banking and finance litigation partner Andrew Bowden-Brown was hired from Francis Wilks & Jones, while former partner Philip Tansley joined Osborne Clarke LLP.
Lawyer Rankings
- Leading individuals London > Insurance > Insurance and reinsurance litigation
- Commercial litigation: mid-market London > Dispute resolution
- Insurance and reinsurance litigation London > Insurance
Top Tier Firm Rankings
- Dispute resolution > Debt recovery
- Employment > Health and safety
- Dispute resolution > Banking litigation: investment and retail
Firm Rankings
- Dispute resolution > Commercial litigation: mid-market
- Insurance > Product liability: defendant
- Industry focus > Retail and consumer
- Corporate and commercial > Venture capital
- Finance > Asset based lending
- Real estate > Commercial property: corporate occupiers
- Dispute resolution > Costs lawyers
- Industry focus > Hospitality and leisure
- TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > Intellectual property: trade marks, copyright and design
- Industry focus > TMT
- Corporate and commercial > Commercial contracts
- Risk advisory > Data protection, privacy and cybersecurity
- Employment > Employee share schemes
- Insurance > Insurance and reinsurance litigation
- Corporate and commercial > Partnership
- Corporate and commercial > Private equity: transactions - mid-market deals (up to £250m)
- Transport > Rail
- Real estate > Commercial property: investment
- Real estate > Construction: non-contentious
- Real estate > Environment
- Corporate and commercial > Financial services: contentious
- TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > Fintech
- Real estate > Planning
- Transport > Shipping
- Employment > Employers
- Real estate > Property finance
- TMT (technology, media and telecoms) > Sport
- Corporate and commercial > EU and competition
- Corporate and commercial > Corporate tax