Marcella Hill

She/her
Partner, Campos Mello Advogados (cooperation firm)*
São PauloLondon
Head of Insurance
About

Marcella, a partner in independent Brazilian law firm Campos Mello Advogados, is an insurance sector leader with extensive experience counselling on multijurisdictional legal matters in the insurance and reinsurance sectors. Her key strengths include combining deep Brazilian, UK, and international experience to counsel global clients on complex (re)insurance regulatory issues, corporate transactions and high-profile claims; leveraging her experience as a trusted advisor to major Insurance sector clients to define and guide commercial growth strategies; leading the mergers and acquisitions of regulated entities, multijurisdictional corporate reorganizations, and portfolio transfers; and building collaborative senior stakeholder relationships up to board level, leveraging existing networks to drive business development.

 

DLA Piper and Campos Mello Advogados (CMA) are separate and independent law firms, which work in cooperation with one another. Partners of DLA Piper are not partners of CMA; and CMA partners are not partners of DLA Piper.

EXPERIENCE

Marcella focuses her practice on transactions, claims and insurance regulatory law, including:

  • Mergers & acquisitions, including the required regulatory approvals
  • Joint ventures, transfer of portfolios and corporate reorganizations
  • Complex reinsurance structures
  • Claims handling and coverage issues
  • Formation and licensing of insurance and reinsurance companies, intermediaries and related regulatory and corporate approvals
  • All aspects of (re)insurance regulation, compliance, corporate governance and market conduct
  • Establishment and review of distributions systems and networks, including structuring arrangements with introducers
  • Licensing of foreign reinsurers in Brazil and related regulatory and corporate approvals
  • Developing compliance systems and controls, underwriting and operating guidelines
  • Insurance and reinsurance product and program design and review
  • Compliance, enforcement and disciplinary actions and any regulatory matters before SUSEP
Representative Experience
  • Advised Arthur J. Gallagher on the Willis Towers Watson insurance treaty business acquisition for USD3.25 billion, including a complex corporate reorganization of the group and related regulatory approvals.
  • Represented The Ardonagh Group on the acquisition of MDS Group, a leading insurance broker and risk management advisor across the Portuguese-speaking world and Europe coordinating the transaction across multiple jurisdictions and required regulatory approvals.
  • Advised QBE of the Americas in $409m sale of its Latin American operations to a leading commercial property-casualty insurance provider.
  • Advised Quest Group in the acquisition of an insurance company in Brazil in a landmark transaction for the legacy industry in the country.
  • Advised AXA XL on the sale of its Brazilian insurance carrier to AXA Seguros S.A.
  • Advised a major Brazilian financial conglomerate in developing insurance products in Colombia, Mexico and Peru, as part of their strategy to expand operations in Latin America.
  • Advised a major global broker in corporate reorganisations and the required change of control applications in Latin America.
  • Advised a world-leading [re]insurer on claims handled in Brazil related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • Advised a major European reinsurance on the largest D&O insurance claim in Brazil.
  • Advised a large European insurer on a complex claim relating to directors' and officers' insurance arising from allegations of corruption.
Languages
  • Portuguese
  • English
  • Spanish
  • French
Education
  • LL.M., International Business Law, University College London

  • LL.B., Fundação Armando Alvares Penteado

Awards

Chambers Global

  • Up and Coming, Brazil Insurance (2024)

Chambers Brazil

  • Up and Coming, Brazil Insurance (2023)
    "Marcella is a very good lawyer with a lot of expertise."
    "Marcella has been active including in many cross-border cases."

The Legal 500 Latin America

  • Recommended, Brazil Insurance (2018, 2019, 2021-2024)
  • Recommended, Brazil Corporate and M&A (2023)
  • "Excellent technical level of the insurance and reinsurance core partners. Great expertise in M&A in the sector – Marcela Hill, Jaqueline Suryan, Mariana Jardim are recommended."

Marcella is recognized as an "Acritas Star – independently rated lawyer" (2016-2021)

  • "She has an extensive knowledge of the matter. She is very fast to answer queries. The quality of her work, language, content."
  • "Marcella is a super qualified lawyer with excellent international experience and is very pragmatic. She is committed to the work, to the deadlines, and to the people."
Excellence and Relationship

Campos Mello Advogados was the first full-service Brazilian law firm to consistently use the NPS (Net Promoter Score) method. In the first year using the method, the firm achieved grade 83.

Pro Bono

  • Leading a project to support victims of child abuse
  • Supporting children who were born in the UK, and have lived there for over 10 years, in acquiring British citizenship
  • Supporting children who were born in the UK, and have lived there for over 10 years, in acquiring UK citizenship
  • Leads the pro bono initiative at Campos Mello Advogados

Publications

  • "Insurance Sector Trends: Forecast for 2018 and 2017 Year End Review," Insurance Update, February 5, 2018
  • Co-author, Insurance Update – 2015 Year End Review and Forecast for 2016, DLA Piper
  • Co-author, Insurance Update – 2016 Year End Review and Forecast for 2017, DLA Piper
  • Opinião.Seg Magazine, "The relevance of Compliance programs for the insurance market," 8th edition
  • Opinião.Seg Magazine, "New Paths in Risk Sharing Between Insurers and Pension Funds," 14th Edition
  • 20 anos da Lei nº 9.613 de 1998 Magazine, "20 years of Law No. 9,613 and anti-money laundering efforts by the Brazilian Insurance market"

Prior Experience

  • Advised large European reinsurer in a major errors and omission claim relating of one of the largest mining disasters in Brazil.
  • Acted as monitoring counsel to a reinsurer in relation to litigation in Brazil arising out of an aviation accident in Colombia, involving Bolivian, Colombian, Brazilian legal issues.
  • Worked with international legacy solution specialist firm, focused on the acquisition of run-off (re)insurance business, in the acquisition of a Brazilian insurance company.
  • Guided incorporation of restructuring firm and its captive insurance broker and related regulatory issues, including a commercial joint venture with a co-broker.
  • Advised global insurance and finance conglomerate on potential cross-border acquisitions via share auction.
  • Advised global insurer on its corporate reorganization as part of their Brexit strategy.
  • Advised global insurer on the negotiation of a distribution agreement with a retail company in Brazil, for the sale of extended warranty.
  • Advised international financial conglomerate on the bancassurance program design and review.
  • Advised large insurance company in several corporate, litigation and regulatory matters relating to its post-merger integration.

Memberships And Affiliations

  • Brazilian Bar Association (OAB), São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro Chapters
  • Member and Co-chair of the Insurance Committee of Lex Anglo Brazil, 2015 - Present

Connect

Phone

+55 11 3077 3500
(Work, São Paulo (Cooperation Firm))
+44 7478 568 672
(Work, London)