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02 July 2026
Categories: Movers & Shakers , Profession
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Sidley—Carl Hotton

Sidley adds insurance mergers and acquisitions partner to London office

Sidley is pleased to announce that Carl Hotton has joined the firm’s M&A and Private Equity practice as a partner in London. He joins from DLA Piper, where he was a partner in their Corporate group specializing in Insurance M&A and reinsurance transactions.

Mr. Hotton has a broad cross-border corporate practice with significant experience advising clients on transactions in the insurance sector, including property and casualty, life, and Lloyd’s market. He advises insurers, reinsurers, intermediaries, and financial sponsors on domestic and cross-border M&A, insurance portfolio transfers, reinsurance transactions, strategic investments and JVs, group reorganizations, and related insurance regulatory matters. Mr. Hotton has been ranked as “Up and Coming”  for Insurance: Non-contentious by Chambers UK.

“Carl is a strategic addition to our growing London insurance practice and adds the necessary scale to our growing cross-border work for clients across the U.S. and London,” said Thomas Thesing, managing partner of Sidley’s London office and a member of Sidley’s Management and Executive Committees. “The firm’s significant investment in London across its transactional, disputes, and regulatory practices is intentional as we now advise more than 80% of the firm’s top 50 firm clients in London.”

“Following the relocation of Sean Carney to London earlier this year, Carl adds to the depth necessary to represent clients on the most significant insurance transactions globally,” said Perry J. Shwachman, global co-leader of Sidley’s M&A and Private Equity group and a member of the firm’s Management and Executive Committees. “Our insurance practice is truly market-leading and with Carl, alongside Sean and James Phythian-Adams leading our London team, we will continue to provide superior service to enable our clients to achieve the best results. ”

Sidley has added more than 29 partners in London in addition to promoting 15 partners to its partnership in the last three years. During this period it has continued its more than a decade-long year-on-year revenue growth and advised clients on many of their most sophisticated matters across its transactional, disputes, and regulatory practices.

Sidley is one of only a few global law firms to have a substantial, multidisciplinary practice group dedicated to serving the insurance and financial services industry. We have nearly four decades of experience and a team of more than 70 lawyers devoted to advising participants in the industry, including many of the largest U.S. and international insurance and reinsurance companies, intermediaries, private equity firms, banks, and regulatory agencies.

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