Priya Cherian Huskins, Esq., Sr. Vice President
Priya Cherian Huskins is a partner at Woodruff-Sawyer & Co., a full-service insurance brokerage and risk management consulting firm headquartered in San Francisco, CA. Selected in 2007 by Business Insurance as one of the industry's "Women to Watch," Priya is a recognized expert in directors and officers (D&O) liability risk and its mitigation. In addition to consulting on D&O insurance matters, Priya counsels clients on how to reduce their exposure to shareholder lawsuits and regulatory investigations as well as other corporate governance matters. She is a frequent speaker nationally and internationally on D&O issues and has taught the topic at Stanford's Annual Directors' College, among others. She has also authored numerous articles for journals as diverse as the Stanford Law Review and Directors & Boards magazine.
Priya earned her undergraduate degree with high honors from Harvard University. She was awarded her juris doctorate with honors from the Law School at the University of Chicago, where she was managing editor of the University’s Legal Forum publication. Following law school, she was a law clerk to the Honorable Judge Frank Magill of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit.
Priya is on the board of directors of Realty Income Corporation, The Monthly Dividend Company®, (NYSE: O). She is also on the board of directors of the National Association of Corporate Directors, Silicon Valley Chapter, and is a member of the California Bar.
Podcasts:
- Board Risk Management Issue: Guarding Against Carrier Failure, NACD Silicon Valley (September 2008)
- Advisor or Cop? An Interview with Lon Allen, CEO of NACD Silicon Valley Chapter, NACD (August 2008)
- Sale of a Company: Director Duties and Personal Protection, NACD Silicon Valley (June 2008)
- Board of Directors Roles and Duties, NACD Silicon Valley (February 2008)
- D&O Insurance: What You Need to Know, Silicon Valley National Association of Corporate Directors (October 2007)
- Directors’ Personal Liability, Silicon Valley National Association of Corporate Directors (June 2007)
Sample Speaking Engagements:
- Ernst & Young IPO Transformation - CEO Retreat (November 2007)
- 2007 NACD Corporate Governance Conference (October 2007)
- Stanford Directors’ Forum (September 2007)
- Dartmouth/University of Chicago Directors Consortium (August 2007)
- Stanford’s Directors College (June 2007)
Selected Publications
- Private Company D&O Insurance Key Considerations, The Entrepreneurs Report: Private Company Financing Trends (June 2008)
- Sale of a Company: Director Duties and Personal Protection, Boardroom Briefings: Mergers & Acquisitions (May 2008)
- “What to Expect in D&O Pricing Trends,” Directorship (December 2007/January 2008)
- Can and Should You Indemnify Your In-House Counsel? Boardroom Briefings: The Legal Issue (September 2007)
- 10b5-1 Trading Plans: The Next Stock-Option Backdating Scandal? Directors and Boards (July 2007)
- The Rest of the Story: Directors and Officers Coverage for Independents, Insurance Journal (May 2007)
- Six Ways to Protect Independent Directors, Boardroom Briefings: The D&O Issue (March 2007)
- D&O Liability Insurance chapter in WSGR's The Initial Public Offering: A Guidebook for Executives and Boards of Directors
To contact Priya Cherian Huskins, please email phuskins@wsandco.com or call 415.402.6527