Stephen O'Donnell

Partner

• sodonnell@steptoe.com
• vCard
• Chicago Office

Stephen O'Donnell is a partner in the Chicago office of Steptoe & Johnson LLP, where he is a member of the Litigation Department.

Mr. O'Donnell focuses on commercial litigation, with particular experience in insurance, reinsurance, and securities litigation and arbitration.

His practice includes cases throughout the United States and abroad, specifically London and Bermuda.

Convergence Engagements
Counsel and represent reinsurance companies and mutual funds in financial guaranty and derivative securities exposures and litigation, including loss and trust funding exposures to “monoline” (financial guaranty) insurers, exposures arising from defaults by municipalities on municipal bond obligations, “transformer” disputes, exposures arising from insurance of credit default swap obligations of swap sellers and securities litigation arising from losing derivative securities investments.

Representative engagements and cases available upon request.

Representative Matters

Insurance/Reinsurance Cases

• Redacted v. Redacted, Private Arbitration, London (Reinsurance dispute over cancellation of catastrophe excess of loss reinsurance treaty)
• Abbott Laboratories, Inc v. Certain Underwriters at Lloyd’s, London, Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois (Insurance coverage litigation involving pharmaceutical product-recall and business interruption losses)
• National Union Fire Ins. Co. et al. v. XL Insurance (Bermuda) Ltd, U.S. Dist. Ct. N.D. Cal. (“Other Insurance” contribution and equitable subrogation dispute)
• XL Insurance (Bermuda) Ltd. v. Sony Pictures Entertainment, et al., California State Court (Insurance product – film finance dispute)
• Redacted v. Redacted, Private Arbitration, London (Insurance product – film finance dispute)
• Redacted v. Redacted, Private Arbitration, London (Reinsurance dispute over coverage under catastrophe excess-of-loss treaty for 2004 hurricane losses)
• XL Insurance Ltd. v. Royal & Sun Alliance Insurance plc., High Court of Justice, Queens Bench, London (financial guaranty reinsurance dispute)
• Royal Bank of Scotland v. XL Insurance Ltd., High Court of Justice, Queens Bench, London (credit default swap dispute)
• The Society of Lloyd’s v. XL Re Ltd. and Others, Private Arbitration, London (excess of loss financial indemnity contract dispute)
• Zurich Ins. Co., et al v. Ace Insurance Ltd., Texas State Courts and Texas Court of Appeals (decision reported at 59 S.W. 3d 424 (2001)) (facultative reinsurance contract dispute, including international jurisdictional and conflict of law issues)
• Ace Insurance Ltd. v. Zurich Ins. Co., et al., High Court of Justice, Queens Bench, London (facultative reinsurance dispute over Saudi Arabian oil well blow-out loss)
• Redacted v. Redacted, Private Arbitration, Bermuda (facultative reinsurance dispute over race discrimination loss)
• Redacted v. Redacted, Private Arbitration, Bermuda (facultative reinsurance dispute over oil spill cleanup loss)

Securities Cases

• Think Equity Inc. v. Urdan, et al., NASD arbitration over alleged breach of fiduciary duty, trade secret misappropriation and electronic data destruction.
•  Goldman Sachs & Co. v. Robert W. Baird & Co. (securities research conflict-of-interest dispute)
• Kemper High Yield Series, et al. v. Gleacher NatWest et al., Illinois State Court (securities fraud dispute arising out of sales of high yield bonds to finance steel mill located in Thailand)
• Cash Account Trust, et al. v. Merrill Lynch, Illinois State Court (securities fraud dispute arising from sales of short term notes issued by Orange County, California)
• CentTrust Bank v. Western Union Corp., et al., U.S. District Courts, N.D. Ill and D.N.J. (securities fraud dispute arising from sales of high yield bonds to failing savings & loan institution)
• Downs Estate v. Kemper Securities, Inc., et al., Illinois State Court (commodities fraud dispute arising from sales of grain, livestock, and currency options and futures to executor of estate).

Select News & Events

• Developments in Reinsurance Arbitrations: What Works and What Does Not in the US, Bermuda, and the UK, February 8, 2008, (A Steptoe-sponsored event)
  Reinsurance Seminar
• Steptoe & Johnson LLP Opens Chicago Office