EXHIBIT 23.1
 
              CONSENT OF INDEPENDENT CERTIFIED PUBLIC ACCOUNTANTS
 
The Board of Directors
W.R. Berkley Corporation:
 
    We consent to the use of our report on W.R. Berkley Corporation and
subsidiaries (the Company) incorporated herein by reference and to the reference
to our firm under the heading "Experts" in the prospectus.
 
    The report of KPMG Peat Marwick LLP on the financial statements, schedules
and selected financial data of the Company as of December 31, 1995 and 1994, and
for each of the years in the three-year period ended December 31, 1995, refers
to the adoption of the provisions of the Financial Accounting Standards Board's
Statements of Financial Accounting Standards (SFAS) No. 115, "Accounting for
Certain Investments in Debt and Equity Securities" at December 31, 1993, and the
adoption of SFAS No. 109, "Accounting for Income Taxes" in 1992.
 
                                            /S/ KPMG PEAT MARWICK LLP
 
January 31, 1997