NU Online News Service, Dec. 30, 9:40 a.m.EST

In the current economic environment, captive insurers are beingused in more ways than ever to maximize value for their parentcompanies. Captive owners will share their insights andperspectives at the Captive Insurance Companies Association'sannual conference, March 7-9, at the Omni Orlando Resort atChampionsGate in Orlando, Fla.

CICA's captive-specific conference program features two fulldays of intensive education sessions, a comprehensive tradeshowwhere captive owners and risk managers evaluate business solutionsand ideas with service providers and domiciles, with plenty ofopportunity for networking.

The CICA International Conference is attended by hundreds ofcaptive and risk retention group professionals from the U.S. andaround the world, CICA said.

"Captive insurance companies have existed for many years and arewell-established. Like most financial tools, their original purposehas evolved and new applications have and are being developed,"CICA President Dennis Harwick said in a statement. "That's themindset behind the 2010 CICAInternational Conference."

He said CICA has created an education and networking programbringing together "the experts who are leading the way for captivesto be used in more ways than ever and to maximize value for theirparent companies. In today's challenging financial landscape,that's never been more important," he said.

The CICA International Conference program opens on Monday, March8 with a keynote address by Peter Leyden, Technology and Future Trends Expert, andauthor of "What's Next?" and "The Long Boom." From start to finish,there are over 20 education sessions geared specifically to theunique needs of captive and risk retention group professionals froma uniquely domicile-neutral perspective.

Program and Speaker Highlights

o "Leveraging Legacy Liabilities: Effective Portfolio Run-OffStrategies in the Current Economic Climate," Art Coleman,president, Citadel Risk Management Inc., and Gregory Lang, seniorvice president, Munich Re America.

o "Establishing Captive Value by Building a HealthcareCooperative," John Cassell, senior partner, Spring ConsultingGroup, LLC; Marta Hayes, program director, ASAE Business ServicesInc.; and Arthur Perschetz, attorney, Kilpatrick Stockton, LLP.

o "Regulatory Update: NAIC & Solvency II and their ImpactGlobally," Damian Sepanik, chief compliance officer, ZurichAmerican Insurance Company; Tim Byrne, managing director,Willis
Management (Dublin) Limited; Guenter Droese, global head ofcorporate insurance, Deutsche Bank Group.

o "Maximizing Value with Successful Management of CaptiveClaims," Robert Butler, account executive, Gallagher BassettServices Inc.; Peggy Kehoe, supervising managing director, DiscoverRe; Charles Norton, general counsel, Coca Cola Bottlers'Association; Mike O'Neill, president, American ContractorsInsurance Group Ltd. Financial Measurers that Matter.

Additional sessions cover middle market captive growth, IFRSaccounting, operational best practices, tax update, fundingretirement benefits, global reinsurance, setting loss reserves andthe annual CICA Fronting Survey.

For information visit www.cicaworld.com.