Clyde & Co has secured the services of two heavyweight figures from the business community to serve as non-executive directors. Former Lloyd's of London CEO Dame Inga Beale and former Grant Thornton US chief executive Stephen Chipman will join the firm’s management board on 1 January 2020.  

It is the first time the UK-based international law firm has appointed non-executive directors.

Senior partner Peter Hirst described the move as a significant one for Clyde & Co as it set out to have “industry-leading governance and decision-making structures in place”.

Beale was CEO of Lloyd's of London between 2014 and 2018, and oversaw its expansion into China, Dubai and India. Clyde & Co pointed to her track record championing diversity, having increased female participation in senior management to one third at Lloyd's and helped to set up Dive, a worldwide event that celebrates diversity and inclusion in the insurance sector. She will have a special focus on the firm's diversity and inclusion policy.  

“I feel I can provide a client-side insight that will benefit Clyde & Co's management operations as well as the day-to-day work the firm does with clients," she said.

In October, Clyde & Co announced the appointment of Matthew Kelsall as its new CEO,  with effect from 1 January.