The team at Debevoise & Plimpton LLP assists a diverse client base, consisting of private equity firms, financial institutions, and insurance companies, such as Sun Life, True North, and AIA. With William Chua having left the team in May 2023, Edwin Northover has taken over as practice head, utilising his vast knowledge of joint ventures and distribution agreements to advise on major players in the insurance industry. Northover is also ‘second to none’ when advising on bancassurance agreements.

Legal 500 Editorial commentary

Testimonials

Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.

  • ‘Ed Northover is the recognised expert in the area of bancassurance distribution arrangements. His industry knowledge and negotiation skills are second to none.’

  • 'Great technical knowledge.'

  • 'The team knows how the client works and how to address difficult issues.'

Key clients

  • AIA
  • Sun Life
  • True North
  • Brunei Investment Agency
  • Amplify Health

Work highlights

  • Advised AIA on the establishment of a pan-Asian health insurtech business and joint venture with Discovery Group.
  • Advised True North on its acquisition of a significant minority stake in Accion Group Holdings, Inc, a Pittsburg-based digital and innovation engineering company, from TA Associates and other shareholders.
  • Advised AIA on the purchase of Blue Cross, a Hong Kong general insurer, and an associated 15-year bancassurance agreement between Blue Cross and BEA Bank.

Practice head

The lawyer(s) leading their teams.

Edwin Northover

Other key lawyers

Jan Buschmann, Wen-Wei Lai