Guy Carpenter has filed an amended complaint in the British High Court alleging that Willis Re orchestrated a coordinated recruitment drive across three continents that resulted in the simultaneous departure of five senior Bermuda-based employees.
The lawsuit names Willis Re (Bermuda) Ltd and four Willis Towers Watson legal entities as defendants, along with three executives. Guy Carpenter previously settled claims against two WTW British entities but continues litigation against Willis Re and other defendants.
According to the filing, Willis executives strategically sequenced the recruitment effort to begin in Bermuda rather than London or the United States. The defendants selected Bermuda because of more flexible notice-period rules and the expectation that the jurisdiction would attract less attention, the complaint states.
On June 10, five Bermuda-based staff members, including CEO John Fletcher, left Guy Carpenter to join Willis Re on the same day London employees resigned. Two additional Bermuda employees departed several days later, bringing total departures to seven.
Lucy Clarke, Willis's president of risk and broking, met with Guy Carpenter employees at the Hamilton Princess & Beach Club on May 29, outlining plans to recruit 100 staff, with approximately 80 from Guy Carpenter.
Ms. Clarke "described a recruitment sequence beginning in Bermuda, then London, then the US," according to the complaint. In April, Fletcher shared confidential employee compensation information with Ms. Clarke, who documented it in handwritten notes that informed Willis Re's employment offers.
By the time the complaint was filed, 22 Guy Carpenter employees worldwide had joined Willis Re. The Bermuda departures created immediate operational disruption in the office's specialty lines division, which manages high-value insurance accounts.
Guy Carpenter contends the departures were deliberately orchestrated with unauthorized transfer of proprietary information. "The defendants knew that their conduct was dishonest by the standards of ordinary decent people," the complaint states.
The firm seeks court injunctions against further Willis Re recruitment and client solicitation, along with damages and an accounting of profits tied to the business disruption.
The case reflects a broader pattern of talent disputes in the insurance industry during 2025. Marsh launched a separate lawsuit against Willis Towers Watson and aviation broker Garrett Hanrahan, alleging the coordinated recruitment of aviation brokers and clients from Marsh.
Industry stakeholders identify recruitment as one of the biggest challenges facing the sector, with talent acquisition hurdles compounding pressures from an aging workforce.
The simultaneous departure of senior talent raises industry-wide concerns about long-term stability. Knowledge gaps in pricing, risk evaluation, and client management could emerge when experienced brokers exit in coordinated waves, potentially creating inconsistent underwriting standards and erosion of client trust.
Without decisive action on mentorship and succession planning, the insurance sector risks losing the contextual judgment that complex risk decisions require.
