Clyde & Co has hired four insurance partners from McLennan Ross to open a Calgary office, its fourth location in Canada.

The quartet include Don Dear KC, Alexis Moulton, Jeff Weidman and Cynthia Aoki, bringing with them a wealth of experience across a range of litigation and disputes areas, such as class actions, product and professional liability claims, property claims and commercial insurance defence. The new Calgary office bolsters its western Canada coverage, following its opening in Vancouver last year when it merged with local insurance and construction-focused firm SHK Law Corporation.

Carolena Gordon, Clyde & Co’s senior partner, said: “The Calgary market is a vital one for our regional and global insurer clients as well as many energy, construction and transportation clients. Each partner joining us has decades of experience operating in this market, and more than that, has an excellent culture fit with the firm.”

Dear is a commercial and insurance litigation specialist, having spent more than 34 years at McLennan Ross. Like Dear, Moulton is a commercial and insurance litigation lawyer, working at McLennan for more than 22 years. Weidman had been with McLennan since 2013, joining from Burnet, Duckworth & Palmer, where he spent more than 15 years. Aoki had been with McLennan since 2015, joining from local Toronto firm Jones Harley.

Dear said: “All of us are hugely excited to establish a new firm in the Calgary market. We know Clyde & Co as a premium brand for insurance not just in Canada but globally, and we hope to be able to take full advantage of the opportunities of this global dimension for our clients.”

In addition to the Vancouver opening last year, it also expanded its footprint in the US with openings in Phoenix, Las Vegas and Denver. It also opened in Munich at the start of last year, while back in August it launched a permanent office in Chile following its merger with local partner firm Grasty Quintana Majlis and construction lawyers Halpern Pino.

Other international firms have been building up their Canadian insurance offerings. At the start of last year, Dentons hired a team of nine insurance lawyers from Cassels Brock & Blackwell in Toronto and Calgary, including five partners.