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Kathleen Birrane

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From accessing healthcare, to driving to work, to starting a business, it is critical that our insurance system runs well and that customers are treated fairly," said Gov. Moore. "Commissioner Birrane is a leader in this industry not just here in Maryland, but across the country. She has led the Insurance Administration with foresight and dedication, and I thank her for her service to our state.
Maryland Governor Wes Moore, April 2024
About

Kathleen Birrane, a partner in the Litigation practice, serves as the firm's US Insurance Regulatory Practice leader. She represents clients who are engaged in, or support, the business of insurance with respect to regulated activities and related litigation. Her areas of focus include the analysis of issues related to the use of technology, predictive modeling/big data, and artificial intelligence in the insurance sector; the development of governance, risk management, and compliance programs; governmental investigations and examinations; and advising on the insurance regulatory aspects of transactions and corporate reorganizations, restructurings, acquisition and investment activities, including due diligence.

Kathleen returned to DLA Piper in July 2024 after four years of service as the Maryland Insurance Commissioner. In May 2020, Kathleen was appointed Maryland Insurance Commissioner by then Governor Larry Hogan. She was confirmed by the Maryland Senate in 2021 and was asked to remain as Commissioner by Governor Wes Moore. During her tenure, Kathleen served on the Executive Committee of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, was the inaugural chair of the NAIC's Innovation, Cybersecurity and Technology (H) Committee, and lead the solvency workstream of the NAIC’s Climate and Resiliency Task Force. Kathleen is broadly recognized as a thought leader on complex insurance regulatory issues, including the responsible and ethical use of AI Systems and complex predictive models in the business of insurance. She was the primary author of the NAIC’s Model Bulletin on the Use of Artificial Intelligence Systems by Insurers, which sets out regulatory guidance and expectations regarding the development and deployment of certain advanced analytical and computational technologies by insurers.

In 2021, Kathleen was elected Chair of the Interstate Insurance Product Regulatory Commission, an interstate compact among 46 US states and territories that serves as a centralized system for the development of product standards and for product filing and approvals for mortality based insurance products, including life insurance, annuities and certain long-term care and income disability products. In June 2024, she was the first recipient of the Compact Champion Award, which was established to recognize transformational leadership and unwavering dedication to the mission of the Compact.

Kathleen's international work has included chairing the Supervisory Forum within the International Association of Insurance Supervisors, as well as serving on the Steering Committee of the EU/US Insurance Dialogue within the US Department of the Treasury, working closely with the Executive Director of the Federal Insurance Office and the Chair of the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA). She also served as Maryland’s representative to the Sustainable Insurance Forum, a project of the United Nation's Development Programme (UNDP) within the UNDP Sustainable Finance Hub.

From 2002 until 2007, Kathleen served in the Maryland Office of the Attorney General in the statutory position of principal counsel to the Maryland Insurance Administration. She managed all of the legal work of the agency, both in its capacity as regulator and as a unit of state government. During her tenure as principal counsel, she served on numerous work groups and task forces of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. After leaving the Maryland Office of the Attorney General, and before joining DLA Piper, Kathleen was a senior vice president and general counsel of portfolio companies owned by major hedge funds that focused on asset consulting, acquisition, diligence, and the servicing of insurance-linked investments.

Bar admissionsMaryland
CourtsTribunal Supremo de Estados UnidosUnited States Court of Appeals for the Fourth CircuitUnited States District Court for the District of Maryland
It has been an absolute pleasure and privilege to work with Commissioner Birrane over the years," said North Dakota Insurance Commissioner and NAIC President-Elect Jon Godfread. "Her leadership, particularly in AI regulation and the Interstate Compact, has had a profound impact not only on Maryland but across the entire NAIC community and the United States. Her efforts were instrumental in guiding North Dakota to join the Interstate Compact, a milestone we could not have achieved without her influence.
— North Dakota Insurance Commissioner and NAIC President-Elect, Jon Godfread
When I think of my work with Commissioner Birrane, it is hard to list everything about her that impressed me," said Missouri Department of Commerce and Insurance Director and NAIC Most Recent Past President Chlora Lindley-Myers. "Certainly, I must admit I am in awe of her mental attributes – she can assess and analyze complex situations quickly and discern and plan her actions decisively. She has always been willing to take on any challenge, and the insurance commissioners have had many complex problems to address in the past four years. We have been fortunate to have her mind and talent directed toward helping solve some of those problems.
— Missouri Department of Commerce and Insurance Director and NAIC Most Recent Past President, Chlora Lindley-Myers
Education
  • J.D., University of Maryland School of Law
  • B.A., Notre Dame of Maryland University

AWARDS AND RECOGNITION

  • 2024 Distinguished Service Award – Mental Health Association of Maryland
  • 2024 Compact Champion Award - Interstate Insurance Product Regulation Commission
  • Named, Top 100 Women of Maryland, Daily Record, 2002 and 2019
Client Quotes
  • "Commissioner Birrane has been a dynamo during her tenure as Commissioner," said Virginia Insurance Commissioner and NAIC Vice President Scott White. "I greatly admire all she has accomplished in so many different areas. Her legacy will no doubt be the amazing work she did in developing the AI Bulletin and getting it to the finish line. We will all greatly miss her passion and intelligence. We will miss her greatly and wish her the best of luck in the future."
  • "As she embarks on this next leg of her journey, I want to express my sincere gratitude for Commissioner Birrane's outstanding service and dedication as Maryland Insurance Commissioner," said Connecticut Insurance Commissioner and NAIC President Andrew Mais. "Her leadership has been exemplary, and her contributions to the insurance sector have left an indelible mark. The NAIC and the consumers we protect are immeasurably better off because of her."

Publications and media

Seminars

  • Speaker, Association for Insurance Compliance Professionals' Annual Conference, September 16, 2024
  • Speaker, "Artificial Intelligence in Insurance," MIA Minutes, June 26, 2024
  • Panelist, "Regulation of Artificial Intelligence in Insurance," The Geneva Association, November 2, 2023
  • Speaker, "Testimony of Kathleen Birrane on Behalf of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners Regarding Current Issues in Insurance," United States Senate, September 8, 2022

Media Mentions

  • Quoted, "Project Finance CLOs Target Loans to Rapidly Growing Data Centre Sector," Creditflux, August 2024
  • Quoted, "Insurers Face Divided Regulator Response to AI Use Risks," Law360, September 5, 2024
  • Mentioned, "People Moves: Maryland Insurance Commissioner Birrane to Leave Post in June," Insurance Journal, April 24, 2024
  • Mentioned, "State Regulators Push Insurers to be Responsible When Using AI," Insurance Business, February 19, 2024
  • Mentioned, "NAIC Releases Highly Anticipated Draft Model Bulletin on Insurers' AI Use," Insurance Journal, July 28, 2023

Prior Experience

Kathleen began her legal career as a law clerk at a Baltimore law firm which elected her a shareholder in 1995. Her practice encompassed a broad range of civil, criminal, and regulatory matters, with a focus on complex commercial litigation, insurance coverage disputes, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), and insurance regulatory matters.

National Association of Insurance Commissioners Roles

  • Member, Executive Committee
  • Officer and Chair, Northeast Zone
  • Inaugural Chair, Innovation, Cybersecurity and Technology (H) Committee
  • Chair, Solvency Workstream – Climate and Resiliency Executive Task Force
  • Co-Chair, Health Workstream – Special Committee on Race and Insurance
  • Member of the Steering Committee of EU-US Insurance Dialogue within the US Department of the Treasury (part of the three-member Team USA, consisting of Federal Insurance Office (FIO), Iowa, and Maryland)
International Regulatory Roles
  • Chair, Supervisory Forum of the International Association of Insurance Supervisors
  • Member and Maryland Representative to the Sustainable Insurance Forum, a project of the United Nations Development Programme

Memberships and Affiliations

  • Member, Maryland Health Benefit Exchange Board (2020 – 2024)
  • Member, Behavioral Health Care Commission (2022 – 2024)
  • Baltimore Bar Foundation
  • Baltimore Area Women in Action
  • Catholic Charities of Baltimore
  • United Way of Central Maryland, Executive Committee of Women United

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