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Chuck Welsh
Co-Founder & Partner
Chuck started his career as an underwriter for Travelers underwriting all lines of commercial business and managing several independent agency relationships. He would later apply his insurance background as a transactional and regulatory lawyer in the insurance practice of the major international law firm LeBoeuf Lamb Greene and MacRae.
In 2002 Chuck became the chair of the leading international insurance regulatory and transaction practice of the law firm formerly known as Edwards & Angell. In these roles, Chuck has served as a trusted advisor to numerous insurance and reinsurance companies, producers, agents and brokers, third party administrators and claims adjusters on complex insurance regulatory and transactional matters.
He regularly represents clients before state insurance regulators. Chuck also serves as outside general counsel and insurance regulatory counsel to both insurance company and insurance agency clients.
Practice Profile
Chuck represents clients from all segments of the insurance industry including insurers – property and casualty and life and health, reinsurers, producers, brokers and third party administrators. Chuck also represents other public and private business organizations with respect to mergers and acquisitions, restructuring and general corporate matters.
Agent/Broker Mergers and Acquisitions
Chuck has represented dozens of insurance agents and brokers in M&A transactions, with a focus on representing clients in the sale of their businesses. His extensive insurance industry experience helps clients smoothly navigate complex transactions, addressing regulatory and related issues unique to the insurance industry.
Regulatory and Compliance Advisory
Chuck advises agents, brokers, TPAs, reinsurers, insuretech startups and other insurance entities on regulatory issues critical to their businesses. In addition to strategic regulatory advice, Chuck assists clients with formation and licensing, contract drafting and negotiation, and representation before state regulatory authorities.
Notable Experience
Speaking Engagements and Publications
Mike Griffin
Co-Founder & Partner
Mike Griffin has spent the past 20+ years helping insurance clients — including insurtechs, startups and investors — navigate challenging regulatory and transactional issues to achieve their business objectives.
A former partner in the internationally recognized Insurance Regulatory and Transactional Practice of the law firm of Edwards & Angell, Mike provides strategic regulatory and transactional advice to domestic and international clients from all segments of the insurance and reinsurance industry, including insurance companies, producers, agents, brokers, and third party administrators.
With his extensive industry experience, client-friendly hands-on approach and a trusted reputation for positive results, Mike has become a go-to resource for insurance regulatory and transactional matters.
PRACTICE PROFILE
Mike practices in the area of insurance and reinsurance law and general corporate law. He provides strategic corporate and regulatory advice to domestic and international clients from all segments of the insurance and reinsurance industry, including producers, brokers and third party administrators. Mike has represented clients in the formation, acquisition, sale and licensing of insurers, reinsurers, producers, captive insurance companies and risk retention groups.
Mike is a member of the Federation of Regulatory Counsel, a national association of attorneys specializing in insurance regulatory law.
Agent/Broker Mergers and Acquisitions
Mike has represented dozens of insurance agents and brokers in M&A transactions, with a focus on representing clients in the sale of their businesses. Mike’s extensive insurance industry experience helps clients smoothly navigate complex transactions, addressing regulatory and related issues unique to the insurance industry.
Regulatory and Compliance Advisory
Mike advises agents, brokers, TPAs, reinsurers, insuretech startups and other insurance entities on regulatory issues critical to their businesses. In addition to strategic regulatory advice, Mike assists clients with formation and licensing, contract drafting and negotiation, and representation before state regulatory authorities.
Notable Experience
Professional and Community Involvement
Speaking Engagements and Publications
Publications
Speaking Engagements
Dan Kalosieh
Partner and M&A Chair
Dan has been effectively counseling companies on various corporate and insurance matters for more than twenty years. He began his career as a Corporate Associate at Day Pitney where he was involved in numerous M&A transactions and securities law regulatory matters, including equity issuances and filings under the SEC’s Investment Advisers Act.
In 2006, Dan joined Aetna where he continued to be involved in significant (including billion dollar) M&A transactions and securities filings, and also expanded his role as an insurance counsel, where he advised business management on various insurance legal issues, policies, and strategy. Dan also served as the national broker counsel at Aetna, overseeing all legal aspects of Aetna’s distribution channels.
Dan continued his involvement in corporate and insurance matters as Associate General Counsel at Hartford HealthCare, where he managed the legal relationship with all health insurance companies, and led all aspects of various corporate transactions, including asset and equity acquisitions and divestitures, mergers, and joint venture activities, as well as the federal and state regulatory filings and approvals associated with corporate transactions, such as Hart-Scott-Rodino antitrust filings. At Hartford HealthCare, he also provided legal support to various business areas including banking, real estate, intellectual property, employee benefit plans and tax.
At ACCEL, Dan serves as Chair of the firm’s M&A practice area, where he leads insurance agency/brokerage M&A transactions with a collaborative approach designed to achieve optimal results. He draws on his extensive corporate and insurance experience to provide practical solutions to his clients’ business challenges. Dan is a graduate of Boston College and earned both his Juris Doctorate and MBA from Rutgers University.
Chantal Hurtado
Chief Operating Officer
Chantal Hurtado serves as Chief Operating Officer and EOS Integrator for ACCEL Law Group and ACCEL Compliance, where she leads operational strategy & organizational alignment across the firm’s core business functions. She works closely with leadership to drive accountability, operational efficiency, and scalable growth initiatives that support both the firm and its clients.
Prior to joining ACCEL, Chantal held senior leadership roles at Tech180, where she oversaw operations, financial planning, and organizational development during a period of significant company growth. She played a key role in strengthening operational accountability, financial discipline, and employee engagement, while helping to build scalable processes and a strong organizational culture. Following Tech180’s acquisition by National Instruments in 2023, Chantal led cross-functional integration initiatives across human resources, finance, IT, and facilities to support operational transition and continued growth.
Before transitioning into operational leadership, Chantal spent more than a decade at Travelers in actuarial and business leadership positions, where she managed large-scale financial analysis, strategic planning initiatives, and team development programs. Her experience included oversight of multi-billion-dollar reserve analysis, operational process improvement, and leadership development initiatives across multiple business units.
Yulia Chillington
Counsel & Regulatory Chair
Yulia is Counsel with ACCEL Law Group supporting client M&A transactions and regulatory and compliance matters. She also serves as Chair of the firm’s Regulatory Practice. Yulia has an extensive background in the insurance industry, in both public and private sectors. Prior to joining ACCEL Law Group, she worked at Aetna/CVS Health as counsel with a focus on health insurance product portfolio growth and development, and regulatory analysis and advocacy. Yulia also served as a compliance risk manager in the past, helping the company identify and mitigate legal risks. Yulia’s public sector experience includes her roles at the Connecticut State Department of Social Services (“Connecticut DSS”), Medicaid Division, and the ACA Connecticut Health Insurance Exchange, Access Health CT. At the Connecticut DSS, Yulia served as a liaison to major Managed Care Organizations. At Access Health CT, her responsibilities ranged from carrier contract management and certification to the ACA employer shared responsibility appeals.
Yulia earned her Juris Doctorate from the University of Connecticut School of Law and is a summa cum laude graduate of Sacred Heart University.
Grant Dupont
Counsel & Corporate Services Chair
Grant is an experienced insurance transactional and regulatory attorney, having previously served as Senior Corporate Counsel for M&A and Corporate Governance at Relation Insurance Services and as Corporate Counsel at BroadStreet Partners.
Prior to joining ACCEL Law Group, Grant was most recently Senior Corporate Counsel for M&A and Corporate Governance at Relation Insurance Services, a private-equity backed insurance brokerage that offers business insurance, employee benefits, personal insurance, retirement services, and risk-management.
In his role at Relation, he advised Relation and its subsidiary entities on a wide variety of matters, including M&A activities, commercial transactions, regulatory issues, corporate governance, litigation, and employment matters. Previously, he spent five years as Corporate Counsel at BroadStreet Partners, an insurance brokerage holding company headquartered in Columbus, Ohio.
Adam Tarr
Counsel
Adam is Counsel with ACCEL Law Group supporting client M&A transactions and regulatory and compliance matters. His previous roles include counsel with the State of Connecticut Insurance Department, serving as the primary attorney for the Financial Regulation Division. While at the Connecticut Insurance Department, he analyzed insurer merger applications and drafted and revised several state orders and insurance regulations. Adam also served as in-house counsel for matters involving insurance regulation, growth strategy, state regulatory filings and privacy at a $2.7 billion fully integrated health care system with more than 18,000 employees. In that role, he represented a new health insurer in its license application process and on-site organizational examination.
Adam earned his J.D. from the Boston University School of Law and is a summa cum laude graduate of The University of Connecticut.
Shaquille Ricketts
Associate
Shaquille Ricketts is an Associate with ACCEL Law Group.
Shaquille first came to ACCEL as a Summer Associate and continued as a Law Clerk during his final two years of Law School. Prior to joining ACCEL, Shaquille gained insurance law experience as a Legal Intern at Travelers Insurance and as a Financial Analysis Intern at the Connecticut Insurance Department.
He also has served in several paralegal roles as a member of the Connecticut Army National Guard, including the International Committee of the Red Cross Military Liaison Department and the 16th Sustainment Brigade of the US Army. He is the recipient of multiple Commendation Medals for his work in Cuba and in the NATO theater of Operations in Europe during his 5+ year career with the US military.
Shaquille earned both his Juris Doctorate from the University of Connecticut School of Law and his master’s in business administration from the University of Connecticut School of Business. He earned his B.A. in Philosophy and Sociology from Fairfield University. He is awaiting admission to the Connecticut Bar.
Max Ruh
Associate
Max Ruh is an Associate with ACCEL Law Group, supporting client M&A transactions, regulatory/compliance and contracts/corporate services matters.
Prior to joining ACCEL, Max completed a two-year judicial clerkship with The Honorable Michael K. O’Keefe in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia. During law school, Max served as a Student Attorney for the Massachusetts Office of the Attorney General, Constitutional and Administrative Law Division. He was also a Judicial Intern for The Honorable Michael H. Watson, United States District Court, Southern District of Ohio. During law school, Max received the Ingrid Michelson Hillinger Fellowship for his commitment to pro bono legal work. He is admitted to the District of Columbia and Connecticut Bars.
Max is a 2023 graduate of Boston College Law School. He earned his B.A, magna cum laude, from The Ohio State University.
Susan Murphy
Senior Corporate Paralegal
Susan is a senior corporate paralegal with ACCEL Law Group and is instrumental in supporting the team’s agency M&A transactions and regulatory and compliance matters. Her day-to-day activities include preparing post-closing transaction documents and closing binders; researching state insurance regulations/statutes; and performing due diligence (including lien and litigation searches, reviewing and analyzing documents in data room, and preparing and reviewing disclosure schedules). She also handles drafting and submitting documentation for new business entity formations, processing entity name changes at the Secretary of State and Department of Insurance, and DBA filings.
Susan received her paralegal certificate from Manchester Community College with a 4.0 GPA. Susan also earned her B.A. in Mathematics (Summa Cum Laude) from Assumption College, and her M.A. in Secondary Education from Kansas State University.
Marissa Guasp
Firm Operations Lead
Marissa is Firm Operations Lead at ACCEL Law Group, where she is responsible for streamlining financial and operations processes across the firm. She works closely with firm leadership and practice area teams to remove obstacles from their delivery of efficient, high-quality client service.
Previously, Marissa was an Accounting Specialist supporting both ACCEL Law Group and ACCEL Compliance. In that role, she oversaw billing operations, revenue management, and financial controls while driving process development and operational strategy. Her focus was the intersection of accounting operations and organizational growth, ensuring financial and operational systems are accurate, scalable, and aligned with leadership priorities.
Marissa earned her B.S. in Applied and Resource Economics at the University of Connecticut.