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Special Section
Professional Liability Underwriting Society (PLUS)

A year of success

Outgoing PLUS President Patrick Kelly looks back
at the Society's accomplishments

By Phil Zinkewicz

When Patrick M. Kelly, 2006 conference chair and then incoming 2007 PLUS president, began his term of office last November, he did so with a fierce determination to bring PLUS to its “next higher level.” Building on the foundation that was laid by previous PLUS presidents, Kelly said that he had plans to start a PLUS school for younger people in the insurance industry to teach them the fundamentals of professional liability.

His plans also included enhancing the PLUS Web site so that members would have easier access to PLUS educational materials and thus keep informed about upcoming seminars. As he leaves office this year, Kelly feels satisfied that those tasks and more were accomplished.

“We had an excellent conference last year,” says Kelly, who is senior partner and head of litigation at Wilson Elser Moskowitz Edelman & Dicker LLP. “The prospect of federal legislation of the insurance industry versus state regulation was high on the agenda. We felt, and still do, that whatever side one is on, the issue needs to be explored, especially since the federal regulation train continues to trudge forward. The increasing impact of federal law in defining professional liability risks, and potentially in regulating the insurance industry, cannot be ignored,” he says.

A panel that was particularly popular at last year’s conference, says Kelly, was one in which professional actors and people from PLUS put together a mock board meeting involving a fictitious bicycle company. The plot revolved around the company’s strong sales posture that was ebbing because of growing competition.

“We explored all the pitfalls a company can fall into when that sort of situation occurs. And we put the specter of federal regulation into perspective,” Kelly says. “We dramatized how management and shareholders are affected by decisions that are made at the board level. It took a great deal of work. Everything was scripted and directed just like a play, and we had to prepare special lighting as well.”

Focus on education

This year, PLUS moved ahead in terms of its educational activities, Kelly says. “We completed the first model for a new curriculum and educational materials to be integrated into the RPLU program. The RPLU program is already strong, but these new materials will add to that strength.

“We started our university, which includes a four-day program of dealing with the nuts and bolts of the professional liability industry. We will also have a special session, during which leaders in the industry—underwriters, brokers and attorneys—will discuss how they got to where they are in the industry. … We have a lengthy waiting list for future university events. Our goal is to keep the student body at the university at 40, so that there will be more individual attention.”

Kelly said that the PLUS education department is also “beefing up” informational material for its mid-year symposium. “We want to reach out and find out what our sponsors want and need.”

Discussing PLUS’s intentions of becoming more “international,” Kelly said that this year the Society hosted a symposium on professional liability in London and will do so again in the coming year.

Kelly also discussed the PLUS Foundation, which is the philanthropic arm of the Society. “The foundation generates charitable and outreach programs that promote diversity and reflect the generosity of the professional liability community. It also provides resources for education and research. The foundation is fast becoming a larger and larger part of PLUS.”

Finally, Rough Notes asked the outgoing PLUS president—the first outside attorney ever to hold the office—what he has learned during his year in office.

Said Kelly: “Our membership consists of underwriters, brokers and attorneys. I’ve learned that it is important to maintain a balance between those three professions when considering issues that pertain to professional liability.

“Secondly, I have developed a greater understanding of the importance of professional liability to the overall economy,” he continued. “Professional liability insurance allows the commercial enterprise system to exist. The more I have come to realize that, the more I appreciate the professional liability industry.”

On a personal note, at last year’s annual meeting, entertainment featured The Beach Boys, and Kelly sat in with them as they played their greatest hits—”Do It Again,” “Surfin’ USA,” “Fun, Fun, Fun,” and “Surfin’ Safari,” among others.

Kelly is a long-time friend of The Beach Boys and has often played guitar with them over the years. “I believe that, when you find out what you’re good at, you do it. I’m good at professional liability insurance, so that’s what I do. But you don’t give up the thing, the hobby, if you will, that makes you a complete individual. For me, music is a major part of my life.” *

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