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Sean Carney

Partner, Co-leader Private Equity and Global Insurance practices at Sidley Austin LLP

London, United Kingdom (relocated from Chicago in early 2026)

SC
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Why they matter

Co-leads Sidley's Private Equity and Insurance practices and has run legal on nearly every major insurance broker and (re)insurer take-private in the last two years.

Background

Sean M. Carney is a Partner at Sidley Austin LLP, co-leader of the firm's global Private Equity practice and co-leader of its global Insurance practice, and a member of the firm's Executive Committee. Based in Chicago for over two decades before relocating to London in 2026 to build out Sidley's cross-border insurance and PE work, he advises insurers, reinsurers, private equity sponsors, and financial institutions on leveraged buyouts, take-privates, carveouts, and large-scale M&A. He holds a J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School (2002) and a B.A. summa cum laude from Truman State University (1999).

Notable deals

  • 2024
    Led Sidley's team advising Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. on its acquisition of insurance broker AssuredPartners
  • 2025
    Led Sidley's cross-jurisdictional team advising Apollo-backed Athora on its takeover of Pension Insurance Corporation Group (PIC)
  • 2025
    Led Sidley's team representing Aspen Insurance Holdings in its take-private acquisition by Sompo Holdings
  • 2024
    Co-led Sidley's team representing Sentry Insurance in its acquisition of non-standard auto insurer The General from American Family Insurance

Call-prep brief

Background

  • Partner at Sidley Austin; co-leader of the firm's global Private Equity practice and co-leader of its global Insurance practice; sits on the firm's Executive Committee.
  • Chicago-trained (J.D., University of Chicago Law, 2002) and Chicago-based for ~24 years before relocating to London in early 2026 to grow Sidley's cross-border insurance/PE book.

Current focus

  • Insurance and reinsurance M&A: broker consolidation (Gallagher/AssuredPartners, $13.45B), (re)insurer take-privates (Sompo/Aspen, $3.5B), and PE-backed insurance platforms (Apollo/Athora's £5.7B PIC deal).
  • Cross-border deal structuring linking US PE sponsors with European/UK and Asian (Sompo, Japan) acquirers.

What he cares about

  • Regulatory complexity in insurance M&A (state insurance department approvals, cross-border regulatory clearance).
  • Deal certainty and speed for PE sponsors moving in and out of insurance-adjacent platforms.
  • Building Sidley's London insurance/PE bench (recently added partner Carl Hotton to the London office).

Recent moves

  • Relocated to London (Feb 2026) explicitly to support continued growth of cross-border work — signals Sidley is betting on transatlantic insurance PE deal flow.
  • Named to Crain's Chicago Business "Notable M&A Dealmakers" list (2025).

Potential sensitivities

  • Just resettled his practice base; may be balancing new London relationships against legacy Chicago/US insurer clients — be mindful of confidentiality across his active mandates (Gallagher, Athora, Sompo/Aspen are all still closing).

Questions to ask

  1. Given the AssuredPartners and Aspen deals, where does he see the next wave of broker/MGA consolidation activity — mid-market or large-cap?
  2. How is the shift to London changing which sponsors and targets he sees deal flow from (US vs. European/Asian buyers)?
  3. What regulatory friction points (state DOI approvals, Bermuda/UK/EU cross-border review) is he seeing slow down insurance take-privates right now?

Outreach draft

Subject
Insurance M&A perspective for an upcoming deal
Hi Sean, I've been following Sidley's recent run in insurance M&A — the Gallagher/AssuredPartners deal, Athora's acquisition of PIC, and the Sompo/Aspen take-private in particular. Your dual seat co-leading Private Equity and Insurance gives you a pretty unique view of where broker and MGA consolidation is heading. We're a private equity team evaluating opportunities in the insurance brokerage/MGA space and would value 20-30 minutes to hear your read on current deal dynamics, regulatory friction points, and where you're seeing the most competitive processes right now. Would you have time for a call in the next couple of weeks? Happy to work around your schedule given the move to London. Best, [Placeholder Name]

Sources

Strongest evidenceStructured data6 public sourcesVerified2026-08-10How the grades work