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April 15, 2004
"Grand Delusion"9:00
a.m.
David
Schiff,
editor of Schiff's
Insurance Observer,
will start off with a look at the seamy side of the insurance
business. Throughout the day he will, as always, interrogate the
speakers and force them to answer brazen questions.
9:30
a.m.
Over
the decades, William
R. Berkley,
CEO of W.R.
Berkley Corporation,
has demonstrated that he knows how to build value in hard markets and
in soft markets. When Bill spoke at our 1999 conference, he was
acutely aware of the risks-and opportunities-that lay ahead.
Since then, his business has been on a roll and his company's stock
(which we had recommended) has more than quadrupled. Bill will give
us his atypical perspective in his typically eloquent manner.
10:40
a.m.
Betsy
McCaughey is a thinker, author, and expert on health policy. Her 1994 critique
of the Clinton health plan, "No Exit," caused a ruckus and
helped kill the plan. Betsy, who was an unusually independent Lieutenant
Governor of New York,
has published two books on U.S. constitutional history and is writing
a book on health care. She will tell all, including how "medical
courts will solve the malpractice crisis."
11:20
a.m.
Milberg
Weiss Bershad Hynes & Lerach LLP didn't invent the class-action lawsuit, but, as the largest
contingency-fee-based law firm representing plaintiffs, it has
certainly perfected it. Senior partner Melvyn
Weiss is a leading practitioner in the fields of securities, insurance,
environmental, antitrust, and consumer litigation. Mel's comments may
leave some members of the insurance industry feeling afraid—very
afraid.
Noon - Lunch
1:00
p.m.
Many
insurance companies don't have the data to price risk properly. Daniel
Finnegan,
president of Quality
Planning Corporation,
is a statistician who knows how to compile, analyze, and use data in
ways that can create a significant underwriting edge. "There's
enormous room for the improvement of prediction," he notes
matter-of-factly. Daniel will take us into the world of rating error,
black boxes, credit scoring, database analysis, geo-positioning
systems, privacy issues, and probabilities. And that's just the
beginning.
1:45
p.m.
It
may surprise some to learn that Schiff's has a hero. His name is Joseph
Belth and he is, of course, the editor of The
Insurance Forum.
Joe, whose articles, speeches, and testimony have shaken up the
life-insurance industry, is the author of numerous books and journal
articles and professor emeritus of insurance at the Kelley School of
Business at Indiana University. He'll tell you what's bothering
him these days.
2:45
p.m.
Jay
Brown is CEO of triple-A-rated MBIA
Inc.,
which specializes in credit-enhancement insurance. He was previously
CEO of Talegen
Holdings,
and before that, CEO of Fireman's
Fund.
Jay, who's an actuary, has a contrarian nature and a keen
appreciation of risk-desirable attributes for one running a company
with $6 billion of equity and $500 billion of financial guarantees
outstanding. He will offer his thoughts about insurance, credit,
financial guarantees, risk versus reward, and more.
3:45
p.m.
David
Schiff will discuss where he sees value and solvency (or the lack thereof),
and have his say on the great insurance issues of the day. |
