Clements, Martinez, Reiss Named To Insurance Hall Of Fame

The International Insurance Society announced that Robert Clements of the United States, Jos? Manuel Mart?nez of Spain and Frederic Reiss of Bermuda have been selected as the 2007 Insurance Hall of Fame awards winners.

IIS said the three will be honored during a July 9 dinner at the InterContinental hotel in Berlin during the 43rd IIS Annual Seminar.

Robert Clements is the chairman of Integro Ltd., an insurance brokerage firm he co-founded in 2005. He is also interim chairman and co-founder of Ironshore Insurance Limited and a member of Tara Partners LLC.

Jos? Manuel Mart?nez is chairman and chief executive officer of MAPFRE, Spain's largest and most successful insurance group, which in 2005 also was the largest non-life insurer in Latin America, with close to 28,000 employees and 5,000 branches and offices in 40 countries.

Frederic Reiss (1924-1993), founder of the International Risk Management Group, coined the term "captive insurer" and became the first person to popularize the insurance captive movement. He ensured that the captive concept became an established practice in the insurance industry, and in so doing, he helped establish Bermuda as a center for captive domicile companies.

The Insurance Hall of Fame is sponsored by the International Insurance Society Inc., New York, a non-profit educational enterprise of insurance executives with almost 1000 members representing 90 nations.

Instituted in 1957 by the Griffith Foundation for Insurance Education, Columbus, Ohio, the Insurance Hall of Fame later moved to The University of Alabama.

There are currently 116 laureates in the Insurance Hall of Fame from more than 20 countries. The qualifications for induction in the Hall of Fame include making a broad and lasting contribution to the insurance industry.

Members of the Hall of Fame are selected by the membership of the International Insurance Society in a secret, independently audited ballot.