Hub International Holdings has appointed Chris Tassone as managing director of its tax liability insurance and risk capability for North America, a role spanning both the US and Canadian markets.
Tassone will work with clients' legal and accounting teams to identify tax exposure and structure insurance solutions that shift that risk onto the insurance market. He reports to Sumit Agarwal, HUB's managing director and head of transactional risk for North America.
The hire adds legal depth to a practice area that has expanded quickly across North American dealmaking. Marsh reported that tax insurance policy counts in North America rose 82% year-over-year, part of a broader surge in transactional risk insurance as global M&A activity climbs toward $5 trillion in deal value.
"Chris's background as an experienced practicing tax attorney gives him a unique ability to navigate complex tax issues and advise clients with the credibility of someone who has also sat on the other side of the table," said Agarwal. "His deep technical expertise in tax credits, M&A transactions, and renewable energy projects makes him an exceptional addition to our team."
Canada's own M&A market has seen tax issues emerge as a recurring pressure point. In a prior report on the Canadian M&A revival, Jordan Villiers Kluckow, head of Liberty Global Transaction Solutions, Canada, said claims under representations and warranties policies are rising in both frequency and severity, with tax matters forming a growing share of those disputes.
Canadian tax enforcement is also tightening. Bill C-31, introduced in Parliament on May 6, 2026, would expand the Canada Revenue Agency's audit powers, adding daily penalties for delayed responses to information requests and a mechanism that pauses the reassessment clock during compliance disputes, according to PwC Canada. An earlier draft would have let the CRA compel sworn testimony from taxpayers, but that provision was dropped from the bill as introduced.
For dealmakers, tighter enforcement raises the stakes on unresolved tax positions inherited through acquisitions, a gap that standard representations and warranties coverage does not typically address. Tax liability insurance is designed to cover known, historic tax positions instead, letting sellers exit deals cleanly while giving buyers protection against a later dispute with tax authorities.
Tassone joins HUB from Taft, Stettinius & Hollister LLP, where he was a partner in the tax practice group advising on mergers and acquisitions, tax controversy and renewable energy tax credits, according to HUB. He earlier worked as a tax consultant in the Credits and Incentives group at Ernst & Young's National Tax Department, and currently chairs the Ohio State Bar Association's Taxation Committee, HUB said.
He holds a law degree from Ohio State University's Moritz College of Law and a bachelor's degree from the University of South Carolina, per HUB.
