Charlotte Worlock trained as a barrister in London and was initially interested in human rights and discrimination law. After graduating from law school, she moved to the United States with her husband to be closer to his family.
She began her career as a paralegal in San Francisco, working with a team of partners at Clyde & Co, which handled some of the earliest data breach cases in the U.S. The team worked on major cyber claims, including the 2013 Target data breach, and advised insurers on coverage issues.
“It was a really exciting time. It was new, but I could also see how directly it impacted people, individuals and customers. I could really see what the insurers were offering was of great value to the companies,” Ms. Worlock said.
After passing the California bar, she took a secondment at Beazley, one of the law firm’s clients, in New York. The specialty insurer was launching its cyber coverage at that time. “Being able to see our work from the other side, from the client side, really helped me understand how much value we can add for our clients,” she said.
When she returned to London a few years later, the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation was still being developed. Over time, Ms. Worlock’s expertise in cyber law became more in demand, and she recognized the need for a U.K. practice.
When her longtime mentors from Clyde founded San Francisco-based Atheria in 2019 and invited her to join, she eagerly accepted. She was promoted to partner in 2021.
During her career, Ms. Worlock has seen cyber threats evolve from business email compromises to sophisticated AI-driven ransomware attacks. “The tactics are getting extraordinarily tough. I strongly believe in the cyber insurance industry as something that helps people through these really difficult incidents,” she said.
Ms. Worlock is a problem-solver and a team-builder, said Christina Terplan, founding partner and president at Atheria and a 2020 Women to Watch honoree.
“She’s definitely a role model,” Ms. Terplan said.
Claire Wilkinson
