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The Property Casualty Insurers Association of America named Cliston Brown as the organization’s director of federal public affairs. Brown comes to PCI after three years with the Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of America where he served as director of public affairs. Previously, he worked for two years as director of communications for U.S. Rep. Peter J. Visclosky, D-Ind., the current chairman of the Energy and Water Development subcommittee of the House Committee on Appropriations.

Boston-based Risk Specialists Cos. Inc., a member company of American International Group Inc. (AIG), has appointed David A. Jordan as chief operating officer. Jordan will continue as a senior vice president of Lexington Insurance Co. In this newly-created position at Risk Specialists Cos., which comprises Lexington’s field organization, Jordan’s responsibilities will encompass business development and broker relationships, operations and staffing, compliance, marketing and product development.

Prior to joining Risk Specialists, Jordan was senior vice president of Lexington’s Program Division.

Pamela B. Carico has joined LMC Capital LLC, based in Charlotte, N.C., as a senior vice president. Previously, Carico was the director of risk management for Springs Industries Inc. and subsequently Springs Global US, Inc. where she managed the insurance program for as many as 15,000 employees and a multi-billion dollar property program.

Insurance broker Beecher Carlson has expanded its Executive Liability team with the addition of Frederick A. Ryder as managing director. Ryder will focus on business and client development for Executive Liability Products by leveraging his 36 years in the business.

Prior to joining Beecher Carlson, Ryder was the former vice chairman and chief operating officer of Marsh Inc.’s FINPRO U.S. practice. In that capacity, he also served as a senior advisor to many FINPRO clients, and most recently concentrated on settling complex D&O claims and litigation.

The Citizens Property Insurance Corp. named Sharon Binnun senior vice president of finance and accounting and chief financial officer. Binnun was deputy commissioner with the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation for the past two years. She replaces Terri Slack, who resigned from the position at Citizens earlier this month.

Binnun has worked as a senior insurance consultant, a deputy director at the former Florida Department of Insurance and at Deloitte & Touche in Miami.

BrickStreet Mutual Insurance Co. has hired Ken D. Howard, of Frankfort, Ky., as underwriting manager and Riva Ellen Bard, of Suwanee, Ga., as large account specialist.

Howard will be responsible for business still written directly with West Virginia employers as well as independent agents. Howard worked previously for Wachovia Insurance Services in Lexington, Ky., and for the Kentucky State Office of Insurance as the deputy executive director. He also worked with Kentucky Employers Mutual Insurance.

Bard previously worked as an underwriting specialist for American International Group, working with large accounts including school systems, coal mines and municipalities throughout the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic states to underwrite excess workers’ compensation coverage. Bard also previously worked as an underwriter for Frontier Insurance Co.

Florida-based insurance broker Brown & Brown Inc. announced the initial implementation of an executive succession plan which contemplates J. Powell Brown ultimately assuming the office of chief executive officer in July 2009, the date upon which Hyatt Brown will retire from that position.

Jim W. Henderson, currently the president and chief operating officer, has been promoted to the office of vice chairman, while J. Powell Brown, currently the regional executive vice president, has been elected president. Henderson will continue to serve as the COO, and will continue to report to the chairman and chief executive officer, and Powell Brown will continue to report to Henderson. Henderson was elected president and COO in 2002 and serves as a director of the company, and as a director and executive officer of several of the company’s subsidiaries.

Brown has been a regional executive vice president since 2002 and also serves in an executive officer capacity for certain subsidiaries. He oversees most of the wholesale brokerage and public entity operations located throughout the country.

Aon has restructured its Entertainment Group. Aon/Albert G. Ruben, which manages risks associated with all aspects of entertainment, including film and television, is now part of Aon’s Entertainment Group. George Walden has been named Aon/Albert G. Ruben’s new chief executive officer, succeeding Sam Cargill, who assumes the role of group chairman. For the past three decades Walden served as president of Aon/Albert G. Ruben New York.

In addition, Paul Jones and Brian Kingman have been appointed co-managing directors in the Los Angeles office. Jones focuses on new business development and managing the risks associated with reality television productions. Kingman manages sales and services for a variety of motion picture studios, film and TV production companies.

Concord, Ohio-based Marsh, Berry & Co. Inc. appointed Brian Witherspoon as the executive director of APPEX, an exchange network for independent insurance agencies, and as and senior vice president of the company. Witherspoon has worked with APPEX for almost two years as the vice president of partner services. He worked at Proudfoot Consulting prior to joining MarshBerry.

AIR Worldwide announced that Karen Clark, its founder, current president and chief executive officer, will assume the role of vice chairman of the board of AIR. S. Ming Lee, currently executive vice president, will succeed her as president and CEO. Clark is a recognized expert in catastrophe risk modeling.

Lee joined AIR in 1996 and has managed several departments over the past decade. He currently directs AIR’s Consulting and Software Services Group. He has led AIR’s modeling support for insurance-linked securities. Before joining AIR, Lee held senior executive positions at several leading information technology companies. He is a former U.S. Navy officer.