Allied World U.S. Announces Mark Rosen to Retire From Claims; Julianne Splain Promoted and Assumes Responsibilities

PEMBROKE, Bermuda, May 12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Allied World Assurance Company Holdings, Ltd (NYSE: AWH) announced today that Mark Rosen, Executive Vice President & Chief Claims Officer for Allied World U.S., will retire effective June 1, 2010. Previously, he was General Counsel and Executive Vice President of Darwin Professional Underwriters, Inc., responsible for its claims, legal, and compliance departments. Following Allied World's acquisition of Darwin, Mr. Rosen assumed responsibilities for Allied World's U.S. claims platform.

David Bell, Chief Operating Officer of Allied World, commented, "We are sorry to see Mark go, and wish him all the best in his retirement. Mark was an integral part of Allied World's acquisition of Darwin and his time here has been invaluable. From Mark's 15 years at the FDIC where he was last Deputy General Counsel for Litigation, to a number of successful positions in the insurance industry, and ending as Chief Claims Officer of Allied World U.S., he certainly has made a significant contribution to our business. Going forward, his responsibilities will be handled by Julianne Splain and I look forward to working closely with her."

Julianne Splain, Vice President, Professional and Management Liability Claims, was promoted to Senior Vice President, Farmington Claims Manager and will assume responsibility for Allied World's U.S. claims department. Ms. Splain currently oversees the handling of all claims under the company's D&O insurance policies, including public, private, not for profit, and healthcare policies. She is also responsible for managing U.S. claims under the company's E&O insurance policies, including managed care, lawyers, insurance agents, technology, media, governmental and miscellaneous professional liability policies. Prior to joining Allied World, Ms. Splain managed D&O and E&O insurance claims at Executive Risk, Chubb Specialty, and HCC Global Insurance. She attended Vassar College and earned a B.A. summa cum laude from the University of Massachusetts. She received her J.D. cum laude from Seattle University. She has spoken on claims and risk management issues at the PLUS International Conference and various other insurance and legal conferences.

About Allied World Assurance Company

Allied World Assurance Company Holdings, Ltd, through its subsidiaries, is a global provider of innovative property, casualty and specialty insurance and reinsurance solutions, offering superior client service through offices in Bermuda, Europe, Hong Kong, Singapore and the United States. Our insurance and reinsurance subsidiaries are rated A (Excellent) by A.M. Best Company. For further information on Allied World, please visit our website at www.awac.com.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Any forward-looking statements made in this press release reflect our current views with respect to future events and financial performance and are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements involve risks and uncertainties, which may cause actual results to differ materially from those set forth in these statements. For example, our forward-looking statements could be affected by pricing and policy term trends; increased competition; the impact of acts of terrorism and acts of war; greater frequency or severity of unpredictable catastrophic events; investigations of market practices and related settlement terms; negative rating agency actions; the adequacy of our loss reserves; the company or its subsidiaries becoming subject to significant income taxes in the United States or elsewhere; changes in regulations or tax laws; changes in the availability, cost or quality of reinsurance or retrocessional coverage; adverse general economic conditions; and judicial, legislative, political and other governmental developments, as well as management's response to these factors, and other factors identified in our filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date on which they are made. We are under no obligation (and expressly disclaim any such obligation) to update or revise any forward-looking statement that may be made from time to time, whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise.

SOURCE Allied World Assurance Company Holdings, Ltd