Risk & Insurance articles from April 2008

Risk & Insurance archives from April 2008

Feeling insecure.
April 1, 2008... You'll excuse me if I tell you that lately I've been feeling a little queasy about risk securitization, the act of distributing risk by aggregating debt instruments into a pool and then issuing new securities backed by the pool. There's...

Jury finds against ESIS.(NEWS & NOTES)
April 1, 2008... A jury has awarded Marin School Insurance Authority $4.66 million stemming from a breach-of-contract lawsuit against its third-party claims administrator, ESIS, Inc. ESIS had served as the workers' compensation claims administrator for the...

AIG seeks court motion.(NEWS & NOTES)
April 1, 2008... American International Group Inc. has asked that a court requirement to turn over internal documents to ex-CEO Maurice "Hank" Greenberg be blocked. An appeals court had ruled earlier that Greenberg should have access to the files. The tussle...

Mich. allows captives.(NEWS & NOTES)
April 1, 2008... Legislation allowing the formation of captive insurance companies in Michigan has been given final approval by the state's legislature. The legislation, unlike other state captive laws, does not impose premium taxes but instead charges captive...

Brit. quake damage light.(NEWS & NOTES)
April 1, 2008... An earthquake with a magnitude of 5.2 has shaken parts of Britain, but there are no reports of deaths or serious damage. The Feb. 27th quake, centered about 50 miles east of the city of Sheffield, struck in the early morning hours and many...

Best addresses takaful.(NEWS & NOTES)
April 1, 2008... A.M. Best Co. has released a report explaining the application of its core financial strength rating methodology to takaful insurance companies. The report includes a review of the key principles of takaful insurance (which is compliant with...

Pandemics risk transfer.(NEWS & NOTES)
April 1, 2008... Munich Reinsurance Co. has created a bond program to transfer pandemic risks to the capital markets. The $1.5 billion bond program aims to protect Munich Re against large losses when a major pandemic across the U.S., Canada, England, Wales and...

DMEC helps soldiers.(NEWS & NOTES)
April 1, 2008... The Workplace Warrior Think Tank, formed by the Disability Management Employer Coalition and insurers The Hartford, MetLife and Unum, has published a free guide of recommendations for corporate response to the deployment of U.S. military and...

Fairly focused.(RISK REPORT)
April 1, 2008... If there is a key to the change in risk management that has occurred over the last five years in religious and other nonprofit organizations as it relates to defending children, it is this: Best practices these days focus on identifying and...

Keyboards and criminals.(RISK REPORT)
April 1, 2008... Ironically, it's the highly trusted employee who can cause the biggest damage--good old Bob or Sally, who's been there for years, knows how to work the system and never takes a vacation. Anyone who has access to valuable company assets, from...

Risk forecasting.(CAT MODELING)
April 1, 2008... Risk managers for insurance companies are staring down massive aggregations of property exposure along the coast. But at least they can see it now, thanks for location intelligence and a host of new risk data. To read the rest of this piece,...

Climate change debate rages.(CAT MODELING)
April 1, 2008... Climate change is occurring, that much is clear. But as for how much and how soon it will affect our world--and threaten insured property--scientists are not sure. So they argue. This debate was front and center at the Cat Modeling 2008...

Choose a nat-cat side.(On the Web)
April 1, 2008... The industry remains sharply divided over the idea of a federal catastrophe fund with Allstate and State Farm supporting the concept while Liberty Mutual remains opposed. The issue also appears to have driven Allstate out of the Property...

Street smarts.(RISK EDUCATION)
April 1, 2008... Excerpts of interviews with some of the most well recognized insurance brokers who--gasp!--don't have a college degree. What are the chances of getting a job in the business now with only a high-school diploma? What are the best certifications...

A model of innovation: the future in catastrophe modeling could be open-source software that's powerful, flexible but perhaps impractical.(UP FRONT: News, Updates and Other Emerging Strategies from Around the World)
April 1, 2008... Academics like Ned Field, a Ph.D. with the Earthquake Hazard Program of the U.S. Geological Survey, have high hopes for open-source modeling software. The tools could be Web-based and tap into online scientific data, then double back and allow...

Former sec chairman warns of tougher job ahead for D&O underwriters: a 'shifting environment' will force underwriters to reassess risks and pricing of D&O insurance.(UP FRONT: News, Updates and Other Emerging Strategies from Around the World)
April 1, 2008... The job of directors' and officers' (D&O) liability underwriters is going to get a lot tougher as unexpected risks sprout from the further deregulation of financial markets, according to former Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman...

Keep an eye on the flock: human infections of H5N1 avian influenza fell last year, but outbreaks in poultry surged.(UP FRONT: News, Updates and Other Emerging Strategies from Around the World)(Clinical report)
April 1, 2008... Last year human and poultry outbreaks of avian influenza did not reach anywhere near the levels seen in 2006 and 2005, but toward the end of the year outbreaks in poultry surged in several regions, according to a recent report. Data and...

Global warming--to a $225 billion opportunity: carbon-trading markets offer a big new opportunity for the financial services sector but rising oceans could also mean billions of dollars in insured losses.(UP FRONT: News, Updates and Other Emerging Strategies from Around the World)
April 1, 2008... Whether you agree with AI Gore or not, there are risks and rewards aplenty connected to climate change, according to a new report. New carbon markets should provide big growth opportunities to the financial services sector in particular,...

Worth repeating.(UP FRONT: News, Updates and Other Emerging Strategies from Around the World)
April 1, 2008... "Bermuda is not just a marketplace. It represents a distinct psychology on how to manage risk, allocate capital and generate optimal returns for shareholders. --Kenneth J. LeStrange, chairman and CEO, Bermuda-based Endurance Specialty...

Steady-state, steady-flow: brokers and buyers may have differing perceptions of good customer service, but a lesson in physics proves why it might balance out.(BROKERS: People, Ideas and Trends shaping the Brokerage Community)
April 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Like the Second Law of Thermodynamics, which holds that differences in physical properties will even out over time, dissatisfaction with brokers' client service skills could likely dissolve. The law follows the...

Lockton.(BROKER MOVES)
April 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Lockton has announced the opening of its Phoenix office and the appointment of senior vice president TODD NEWTON to direct the new operation. A former executive vice president at Brown & Brown, Newton's focus is...

Aon Construction Services Group.(BROKER MOVES)
April 1, 2008... SCOTT RONS has joined Aon Construction Services Group as assistant vice president, surety operations. Based in Denver, Rons was most recently employed with Safeco Surety as a senior account specialist. --Compiled by staff from news and...

Beecher Carlson.(BROKER MOVES)
April 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Beecher Carlson has appointed STEVE DENTON, the company's COO since July 2006, to president. Denton has also been elected to Beecher Carlson's Board of Directors. He first joined Beecher Carlson in 2004 as Managing...

Boston Insurance Brokerage Inc.(BROKER MOVES)
April 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] U.S. Risk Insurance Group Inc., a Dallas-based managing general agency and surplus lines wholesaler, has named BRENDAN DOLAN a senior broker in the workers' compensation department at Boston Insurance Brokerage Inc.,...

Hilb Rogal & Hobbs.(BROKER MOVES)
April 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Hilb Rogal & Hobbs has appointed PETER GRUENBERG to Employee Benefits Practice Leader for the newly formed Metro Northeast region which includes New Jersey, New York, southern Connecticut and southeastern...

Willis Group Holdings Ltd.(BROKER MOVES)
April 1, 2008... Willis Group Holdings Ltd. appointed ALENA WATCHORN to its Mergers & Acquisitions Practice Group as an executive director. Watchorn comes to Willis from HSBC Insurance Brokers, where she headed up the corporate finance team and simultaneously...

Beecher Carlson Inc.(BROKER MOVES)
April 1, 2008... Beecher Carlson Inc. expanded its National Energy practice with the appointment of CHARLES PIERPONT as managing director. Pierpont brings 20 years experience in the power generation industry. He previously served as area executive president for...

Hilb Rogal & Hobbs Co.(BROKER MOVES)
April 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Hilb Rogal & Hobbs Co. has appointed TAPAN KATWALA to regional IT leader for its Metro Northeast region, which includes New Jersey, New York, southern Connecticut and southeastern Pennsylvania. Previously, Katwala...

Painkillers out of control.(WORKERS' COMP)
April 1, 2008... There are several compelling reasons why workers' comp adjusters should be more diligent than they currently are in overseeing the use of painkillers for chronic pain. We tend to focus on diversion, or misuse of prescribed drugs. That's...

Backward into the future.(ROGER ON RISK)
April 1, 2008... I am aged now, ancient to a degree that makes Methuselah look like a teenager. The dust of ages sits heavy on my shoulders. I have seen civilizations come and go, and I understand much; yet there remain things that even one as sage as I cannot...

Learn from Vince Lombardi.(BROKERAGE)
April 1, 2008... This year's Super Bowl calls to mind the philosophy of Vince Lombardi, the late and legendary coach of the Green Bay Packers. Lombardi in his playing days was also a member of Fordham's famed "Seven Blocks of Granite" and later served as an...

World's oldest profession?(RISK MANAGEMENT)
April 1, 2008... Risk management often seems like a young profession. Every time a huge catastrophe strikes, or a new form of risk emerges, it seems as if we have hardly begun to manage risk. But two remarkable archeological discoveries could change that...

Saving money by saving money.(THE LAW)
April 1, 2008... OK, I admit it. I just got my first ear insurance bill with a teenager on the policy. While I knew that teenagers added risk (and premiums), I didn't realize how much. 80, aside from telling them to grow up (and to do it quickly), what can you...

At Liberty to go long: Liberty Mutual's reinsurance chief extols freedom from those quarterly crosshairs and slams efforts to put the federal government in the catastrophe risk business.(Cover story)
April 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Summary * For J. Eric Brosius liberty is just another word not having to have answer every three months to Wall Street analysts. * While a decade ago banks were merging with insurance companies Liberty...

Dominance in dispute: Bermuda, once the reinsurance industry's unassailable leader, has seen its margin of leadership trimmed as other domiciles compete for premiums and the government looks to diversify the island's economy beyond carriers, reinsurers and captives.(IN-DEPTH)(Company overview)
April 1, 2008... Summary * In the next 10 years Bermuda will not dominate the industry as it did over the last 10 years, according to one analyst. * Policies proposed by anew government have alienated some insurance company executives who have thought...

A hard' convention welcome: the Risk and Insurance Management Society Inc. can't wait to return to the warm confines of San Diego for its annual convention after a couple of soft years.(RIMS PRIMER)
April 1, 2008... Summary * More than 10,000 attendees are expected at RIMS 2008 which will host morn than 130 sessions, * The last time buyers and sellers met in San Diego was four years ago, a time when the dynamics of the insurance marketplace were...

Dishin' dirt on the property data: garbage in, garbage out, as they say about CAT models. And what they also say now is that the smell is coming from you, risk managers. Is this fair, or is everyone shoveling the garbage?(CATASTROPHE)
April 1, 2008... Summary * CAT modelers, insurers and reinsurers are increasingly concerned about the poor quality of property exposure data that is essential for proper use of the modeling tools. * They say the for needs to come from "upstream,"...

A class apart: successful professionals don't always have the traditional educational background that you'd expect. A look at a few of our brightest 2008 Power Brokers highlights the advantages of schooling outside the classroom.(INSURANCE)
April 1, 2008... SUMMARY * Michael Lamprecht is a techie who found a niche in his father's industry by serving the underserved dotcoms. * John Purdum found his passion working for an industry that had failed his family when their grocery store was...

Public nuisance: a new battleground for policyholders and insurers: the current wave of public nuisance-based tort litigation is focused on two areas, lead paint and global warming.(SPECIAL REPORT: CLAIMS)
April 1, 2008... Summary * A public nuisance is defined as "an unreasonable interference with a right common to the general public," and under public nuisance theory, governments may seek to compel the party responsible to abate the nuisance. *...

E-signature slumber: time is running out for carriers and agency management vendors as a younger generation looks to sign on the electronic bottom line.(SPECIAL REPORT: CLAIMS)(Interview)
April 1, 2008... Summary * Property/casualty companies have lagged their peers in the financial services sector in adopting electronic signature technology. * Because digital signature technology can be complex, Tower Group consultant Karen Pauli is...

A question of faith: after a decade of penance highlighted by million-dollar misconduct settlements, churches accept their responsibility and adopt more serious risk management programs but have yet to make believers out of the insurance markets.(INDUSTRY RISK REPORT: NONPROFITS)
April 1, 2008... Summary * Despite a softer market and better nonprofit risk management, the pool of underwriters willing to write policies covering misconduct liability has remained relatively limited. * An increased focus on risk management and a...

Industry risk report nonprofits.
April 1, 2008... INDUSTRY RISK REPORT NONPROFITS The nonprofit s listed in this report are engaged in human services that range from betting on horses at a racetrack in Iowa to providing reproductive counseling to men and Women across the country. As...

Directory: third party administrators.(Directory)
April 1, 2008... DIRECTORY THIRD-PARTY ADMINISTRATORS Below are paid listings of third-party administrators (TPAs) according to the types of claims they handle: health care; disability; workers' comp; managed care automation; software automation;...

FM Global.(EXECUTIVE MOVES)
April 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Commercial property insurer FM Global has appointed JONATHAN W. HALL as senior vice president of underwriting and reinsurance. Hall served as senior vice president and manager of the company's Eastern (U.S.)...

FM Global then appointed Michael R. Turner as senior vice president and manager of its Eastern (U.S.) Division, succeeding Hall.(EXECUTIVE MOVES)
April 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] FM Global then appointed MICHAEL R. TURNER as senior vice president and manager of its Eastern (U.S.) Division, succeeding Hall. Turner most recently served as vice president and operations manager for FM Global's...

Century Healthcare.(EXECUTIVE MOVES)
April 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Century Healthcare, a full-service TPA and healthcare insurance organization, has announced that its recently appointed president, JAY BECK, will assume the additional role of chief executive officer. The company's...

Kaufman Dolowich & Voluck LLP.(EXECUTIVE MOVES)
April 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The litigation firm of Kaufman Dolowich & Voluek LLP has made CHRISTOPHER NUClFORA a partner. Nucifora concentrates his practice primarily in the areas of commercial litigation, surety and fidelity, and construction...

Guy Carpenter & Co.(EXECUTIVE MOVES)
April 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATIONS OMITTED] Guy Carpenter & Co., the reinsurance arm of Marsh & McLennan Cos., has made three appointments to its Executive Committee. NICK FRANKLAND, CEO of Guy Carpenter's European operations, is responsible for broking...

Specialty Risk Services.(EXECUTIVE MOVES)
April 1, 2008... Specialty Risk Services, a Hartford, Conn.-based property-casualty third-party administrator for workers' compensation and liability claims, has named JAMES P. RYAN to the position of senior vice president of Field Operations, reporting to SRS...

Marsh & MeLennan Cos. Inc.(EXECUTIVE MOVES)
April 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATIONS OMITTED] Marsh & MeLennan Cos. Inc. has appointed PETER ZAFFINO as Chief Executive Officer and BRITT NEWHOUSE as Chairman of its reinsurance intermediary Guy Carpenter. Both Zaffino and Newhouse will report directly to MMC's...

Valley Oak Systems Inc.(EXECUTIVE MOVES)
April 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Valley Oak Systems Inc., an insurance technology solutions unit of Aon Corp., announced that JACQUELINE PAYNE has joined the company as vice president of managed care. Payne's appointment will enable a strategic...

Zurich.(EXECUTIVE MOVES)
April 1, 2008... Zurich has named DOMENICK DICICCO chief claim counsel for its North America Commercial division, responsible for managing claims legal operations In Zurich's Schaumburg, Ill., and Baltimore offices. DiCicco joined Zurich in 2005.

Upcoming events.(Calendar)
April 1, 2008... APRIL 20-22 AAIS Main Event The American Association of Insurance Services will host its 2008 "Main Event," featuring sessions and group discussions focused on product-related issues of strategic importance to company CEOs. This...

National Flood Insurance Program: keep it afloat: providing flood insurance is a worthy role of government, deserving of reform and reauthorization by Congress.(POINT)
April 1, 2008... You can count on the federal government sticking its nose where it's not wanted, but not in the case of flood insurance, surely one of the most worthwhile programs ever passed by Congress. The program, begun in 1968, may be flawed and in debt....

National Flood Insurance Program: drown it: by the very nature of its structure, the bankrupt and unwieldy program is unworkable.(COUNTERPOINT)
April 1, 2008... As the United States Congress, in its hapless way, considers yet another weak to its hapless offspring, the National Flood Insurance Program, perhaps some discussion of the program s merits is in order. Thus arrives the end of the discussion:...

Regulator-go-round.
April 15, 2008... Wanted: Captive insurance regulator who can steer the ship straight ahead. Must like meetings and captive managers and tolerate the press. Experience navigating cocktail hours and golf courses a plus. Domiciles have had this help-wanted ad...

Re premiums down.(NEWS & NOTES)
April 15, 2008... A report from the Reinsurance Association of America found that a group of 20 U.S. P/C reinsurers wrote $3.1 billion less in net premiums during the 12-month period ending Dec. 31, 2007. The RAA analysis of reinsurers' statutory underwriting...

Bad news bear stearns.(NEWS & NOTES)
April 15, 2008... Just a couple days before troubled investment bank Bear Stearns Co. Inc. agreed to be bought for $2 a share by JPMorgan Chase & Co., an unrelated ruling came in from a New York appeals court that found the company's insurers are not responsible...

AIG pays up to PA.(NEWS & NOTES)
April 15, 2008... American International Group Inc. reached a $13.5 million settlement on March 13 with the Pennsylvania Insurance Department. The agreement ended an investigation into financial misreporting involving its alleged sham reinsurance deal with...

GA ups tornado losses.(NEWS & NOTES)
April 15, 2008... Georgia has raised its estimate of insured property damage from a mid-March tornado in Atlanta and storms across the state to $250 million. The tornadoes were deemed an insurance catastrophe event by Property Claim Services. Georgia Insurance...

Guilty plea for Scruggs.(NEWS & NOTES)
April 15, 2008... Prominent plaintiff's attorney Richard Scruggs has pled guilty to bribery conspiracy charges. The plea, related to an attempt to bribe a Mississippi state judge, was entered during a pretrial hearing in Oxford, Miss., on March 14. Scruggs had...

RIMS responds to S&P.(NEWS & NOTES)
April 15, 2008... The Risk and Insurance Management Society Inc. provided feedback to ratings agency Standard & Poor's regarding its recently adopted enterprise risk management framework. RIMS said it supports the framework because a well-implemented ERM program...

The aftermath of catastrophe.(SUPPLY CHAIN)
April 15, 2008... The devastation of the last few years from both manmade and natural catastrophes--such as the 2001 terrorist attacks, Hurricane Katrina and recent California wildfires--has prompted our society to re-examine its views on risk management and...

Supply chain total access.(SUPPLY CHAIN)
April 15, 2008... Risk & Insurance[R] conducted a survey, in conjunction with Marsh, to find out how the industry's top minds view supply-chain risk. Read an excerpt of the report in this issue, but find the complete Marsh report and further analysis on our Web...

Protecting against product liability and recalls.(UNDERWRITING)
April 15, 2008... Although many companies have put into place rigorous quality control procedures, no amount of quality-control or care can eliminate all risk that a company's products might become contaminated or dangerous. To read the rest of this piece,...

Ingrain modeling in underwriting.(UNDERWRITING)
April 15, 2008... Catastrophe modeling is set to have an even bigger impact on underwriting. The software's vendors are pushing hard for the integration of their products into carriers' underwriting systems. To read the rest of this piece, please visit us on...

Live RIMS coverage.(RIMS)
April 15, 2008... Unable to make the trip to San Diego? You can still feel like you're at this year's RIMS event by visiting our Web site every day of the conference. We'll be featuring live commentary and reports on sessions, speeches and anything else...

Five costly mistakes with workers' compensation managed care organizations.(WORKERS' COMP)
April 15, 2008... How is it that a system developed to manage the utilization of care and costs associated with workers' compensation actually ends up costing employers more than is necessary? To read the rest of this piece, please visit us on the Web at...

India and China: huge but tough markets: two of the world's largest insurance markets are also two of the hardest to master.(UP FRONT: News, Updates and Other Emerging Strategies from Around the World)
April 15, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] India and China, among the world's fastest growing economies, represent big opportunities for the insurance industry. But a new report finds that penetrating those markets is not easy as billions of consumers are...

Report: D&O financial services pricing up 18 percent in fourth quarter of 2007: mortgage market and subprime collapse blamed for price spike.(UP FRONT: News, Updates and Other Emerging Strategies from Around the World)
April 15, 2008... Directors and officers pricing for the financial services sector rose by more than 18 percent in the fourth quarter over the same period in 2006 due to troubles related to the mortgage market and subprime lending, according to a new study. ...

Experts: traditional D&O policies ill-suited for big drug makers: underwriters looking to cover pharmaceutical. companies may want to pop a Tylenol or two as they wake up to the sobering fact that their policies just aren't adequate any longer to cover Big Pharma.(UP FRONT: News, Updates and Other Emerging Strategies from Around the World)
April 15, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] According to professional liability coverage experts, risks ranging from stock gyrations to Food and Drug Administration testing protocol, to new exposure brought on by generic drugs have put buyers in a tough spot....

An inside job: the Vermont Captive Insurance Division made big news with its promotion of David Provost, Here's the inside scoop on why he was picked.(UP FRONT: News, Updates and Other Emerging Strategies from Around the World)
April 15, 2008... On Feb. 29, 2008, the Captive Insurance Division of the Vermont Department of Banking, Insurance, Securities & Health Care Administration announced that it promoted David Provost to become the next deputy commissioner when current lead man Len...

Worth repeating.(UP FRONT: News, Updates and Other Emerging Strategies from Around the World)
April 15, 2008... "Most people don't begrudge most industries from making a profit but they don't particularly care for It when insurance does." --Don Griffin, director of personal lines, Property Casualty Insurers Association of America "There wilt...

The calm after the storm: former Marsh CEO Brian Storms finally speaks--about his new job and the stress he's left behind.(BROKERS: People, Ideas and Trends shaping the Brokerage Community)
April 15, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] BRIAN STORMS was named CEO of Santa Clara, Calif.-based independent technology company APX on Jan. 31 after leaving Marsh last fall. What do you do after you leave the job as CEO of the world's largest insurance...

Aon purchases Gallagher Re.(BROKER NEWS & NOTES)
April 15, 2008... Aon Corp. has acquired Gallagher Re's U.S. and U.K. reinsurance brokerage business. The agreement included an initial payment of $30 million, and an additional payment for revenues generated in the 12 months after the transaction close date....

Brown goes to the Brits.(BROKER NEWS & NOTES)
April 15, 2008... Brown & Brown Inc. opened its first unit outside the United States on March 1. Based in London, Decus Insurance Brokers Ltd. has divisions for property/casualty brokerage, professional liability and binding authority programs. The London unit...

Gallagher acquires Splinter.(BROKER NEWS & NOTES)
April 15, 2008... Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. has acquired Park Ridge, Ill.-based retail insurance broker, The Splinter Group. Splinter offers its Midwest clients risk management services and commercial property/casualty, employee benefits and personal-lines...

Willis consults on China dam.(BROKER NEWS & NOTES)
April 15, 2008... Willis Group Holdings has been designated as the insurance consultant for the Three Gorges Project in China. The world's largest hydropower project spans the Yangtze River in Sandouping and will generate enough electricity to power a city four...

Former Willis SVP arrested.(BROKER NEWS & NOTES)
April 15, 2008... Kenneth MacKay has been charged with embezzling and stealing more than $2.2 million from Willis Management (Vermont) Ltd. and its clients. MacKay, 36, a former senior vice president in Willis's Vermont-based captive management operation, was...

Lockton to plan retirements.(BROKER NEWS & NOTES)
April 15, 2008... Lockton Cos. has created a retirement services practice for corporate and not-for-profit organizations in its Chicago office, to be headed by Doug Morris. The practice will provide consulting services on investment policy statement drafting,...

Mulling over Spitzer's legacy.(WORKERS' COMP)
April 15, 2008... On March 1, 2007, New York's newly elected governor said that the whole workers' compensation system "has become ossified and unresponsive." Within two weeks, Eliot Spitzer signed into law a reform package, ramrodding it through Albany's...

Driving to ruin.(ROGER ON RISK)
April 15, 2008... Not long ago, I met Willie Walsh, the chairman of British Airways. Lest I reveal to him my utter cluelessness, I did some research in advance. I discovered some extraordinary data that I thought I'd share with you. The subject is what the...

Don't take buyers for granted.(BROKERAGE)
April 15, 2008... Risk managers gathering this week in the city of allegedly perfect weather will hopefully spend their spare time taking advantage of it. Perhaps a visit to the zoo or a walk on the beach in front of the Hotel Del Coronado so familiar to "Some...

Of circular frequencies.(RISK MANAGEMENT)
April 15, 2008... The story is familiar to anyone reading the papers: A trader working for a European bank establishes a huge number of risky trades. Through his knowledge of the system, he manages to mask his activities in order to make far larger, far riskier...