The D&O Diary was on assignment in Florida last week, with stops in both Orlando and Miami. It is always a pleasure to be in Florida, even though this time the Orlando leg of the trip was unusually cold.

The primary purpose of the Orlando visit was to attend the annual Professional Liability Underwriting Society (PLUS) Conference. As always, the Conference was well-organized and well-attended. It was a pleasure to see so many old friends and to make new friends as well. It was gratifying to learn how many of the new members of our industry follow The D&O Diary. It was also my honor to be able to participate as a panelist for one of the sessions, as reflected in the picture below. My congratulations to the PLUS staff for another excellent event.

I enjoyed the opportunity to moderate this panel of distinguished industry professionals as we discussed the impact of the Trump Administration’s policies on the Financial Lines industry. I congratulate my fellow panelists, who did an excellent job. From left to right, Thad Behrens of the A&O Sherman law firm; Megan Scully of QBE; Elizabeth Neumann of CAC Specialty; and Sachin Warty of Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance. It was an honor to be a part of this panel.

One of the things I always particualrly enjoy about the PLUS Conference is the chance for me to meet the young people who are new to our industry. I enjoyed the chance to meet and talk with Kelsey Hayes of Munich Re.
I was also pleased to have Frantz Bleutz of Zurich North America introduce himself to me. It was quite gratifying to me to learn how many of the young attendees follow The D&O Diary.
At the very chilly outdoor reception on the event’s first evening, I was very happy to see Rachel Smith and Sydney Burns of Arthur J. Gallagher. I met Rachel and Sydney at a prior PLUS event, which we had memorialized in a photo at the time. I was happy to see them again this time, because they had recently shared with me a photo showing that for their office Halloween party, they had dressed up as “The D&O Diary Guy,” complete with false mustaches and cans of LaCroix water. What an absolute hoot! Thank you Rachel and Sydney for making me laugh.
Here’s a picture with my good friend, Sarah Abrams, of Baleen Specialty. D&O Diary readers will recognize Sarah as a frequent guest post contributor on this site. At the conference, Sarah did an excellent job interviewing former Alabama football coach and guest speaker Nick Saban, as reflected in the picture below.
Sarah Abrams interviewing Coach Saban.
After my panel session, I enjoyed meeting these three gentlemen, who had traveled from Germany to attend the Conference. They wanted to get this picture with me to show to a colleague who apparently is a big fan of The D&O Diary (but who could not attend the conference because his wife is about to have a baby). From left to right: Max Schink, Thomas Windheim, and Matthias Hirschfeld, all of Hannover Re.
I was also happy to catch up with my good friends Peter Schlamberger and Vanja Nadali, both of Polaris Corporate Solutions. Peter traveled to the conference from Slovenia, and Vanja traveled from Croatia. Although Peter and Vanja traveled a long way to attend the conference, they were not the ones who had traveled the furthest, as discussed below.
I was also very happy to be introduced to Mamie McRae of WTW in Atlanta. Mamie is also a big fan of The D&O Diary.

Following the PLUS Conference I flew from Orlando to Miami to meet with friends and to participate in an event with the Latin America Casualty Financial Lines Underwriters Group, an affinity group of underwriters from the many insurance carriers who write Latin American financial lines insurance business from Miami. This was a truly interesting experience for me, as I learned a lot about the Latin American D&O market and also learned how so much of that business is underwritten out of Miami.

I can’t tell you how much I enjoyed meeting and having the opportunity to speak with this group of Financial Lines underwriters in Miami. I addressed the group on the topic “Hot Topics in D&O in 2025,” and then we had a lively discussion about coverage issues, market conditions, and claims trends, both in the U.S. and in Latin America. It was a very high level discussion, and no one learned more than I did. From left to right in this picture: Matt Kelly of Trans Re; Natalia Valdez of XS Global; Carolina Carmona of Liberty Specialty Markets Latam; Giovanni Fanizza of Partner Re; Belen Navarro Rull of Zurich; Najib Bousakr of Beazley; Catarina Malafaia of Chubb; Juan Delgado of Everest Insurance; Juliana Canon of Everest Re; Luis Estaban Zurita of Partner Re; Serena Qi of Trans Re (more about Serena below); David Gonzalez of Ryan Specialty Latin America; and Natalia Ocambo of Trans Re.

A quick note about Serena Qi, who is on the right side of the picture above. I first met Serena in Sydney in September. I then saw Serena in Singapore in October. I next saw Serena at the PLUS Conference in Orlando. And then Serena not only attended the LatAm underwriters’ event on Thursday, but she was part of the small group that went to dinner together on Thursday evening. Serena and I apparently are destined to be Conference Buddies for life. Serena is based in Singapore, and I think she takes the prize for the person who traveled the furthest to attend the PLUS Conference.

Here’s a selfie taken with my good friend Gio Fanizza of Partner Re. Gio and I have been friends for over 30 years. I owe Gio my everlasting thanks for inviting me to participate in the LatAm underwriters’ event in Miami. I also want to thank Gio for being such an excellent host while I was in Miami. Gio is a gracious, charming, and generous individual, and he is also extraordinarily good company. I am very grateful to be able to call him my friend. Gio, you are a gentleman and a scholar. I owe you one.
I spent most of my time in Miami indoors, so I didn’t get that much of a chance to see the sights. Late one afternoon I did have a brief chance to walk along the Bay. It really is amazing how much Miami has changed since I first started going there in the early 80’s. It is also amazing how much growth there is in Miami now. Gio quipped that Miami is “Dubai on the Atlantic,” and there is some truth to that.
A view from the Miami rooftop bar where we had drinks on Thursday evening, looking west toward the sunset. It was very pleasant to be able to sit comforably outdoors on an evening in November. It was great just to have the chance to visit Miami. I look forward to visiting again soon to see my many new friends there.