The private risk arm of global insurer ACE has announced a raft of appointments in the US.

ACE Group has made leadership appointments at its private risk services business, effective when its acquisition of the US high net worth personal lines insurance business of Fireman’s Fund is completed.

The transaction, announced in December (see here), is expected to close in the second quarter of this year.

The appointments are:

-- James Williamson, currently chief operating officer for ACE's international accident and health insurance unit, will serve as division president of private risk services. Williamson will be responsible for ensuring the integration of the two companies and then leading the combined business. He will report jointly to Juan Andrade, executive vice president of ACE's personal lines and chief operating officer of ACE Overseas General, and John Lupica, vice chairman of ACE Group and chairman for insurance in North America.

-- Mary Boyd - currently division president of ACE Private Risk Services - will serve as deputy division president and will report to Williamson. Boyd will lead underwriting, product management, analytics, actuarial, IT, and project management. She will also be responsible for business operations in Canada;

-- Meanwhile, Eric Shanks will join ACE as senior vice president and lead product management and analytics at ACE Private Risk Services. Shanks is currently a senior vice president responsible for product management and high net worth underwriting at Fireman’s Fund Personal Insurance. He will report to Boyd.

-- Robert Haibi will join ACE as senior vice president and co-lead the ACE Private Risk Services distribution organisation. Currently the national distribution executive at Fireman’s Fund Personal Insurance, Haibi will be responsible for ACE’s relationships with its largest national and global distributors, training and best practices, as well as regional distribution responsibilities for the western and central regions. He will report to Williamson.

-- Annmarie Camp, who currently leads the ACE Private Risk Services distribution organization, will co-lead the new distribution organization with Haibi. Camp will have national distribution responsibility for the company’s premier and high net worth segments, as well as for all marketing and communications. In addition, she will have regional responsibility for the northeast and southern regions. Camp will report to Williamson.

-- William McDuffie, currently field service operations executive at Fireman’s Fund Personal Insurance, will join ACE Private Risk Services as the lead operations executive, reporting to Williamson.

-- Tiffany Alvey, currently vice president of claims at Fireman’s Fund Personal Insurance, will join ACE as deputy head of claims and report to Clyde Douglas, chief claims officer for ACE Private Risk Services.

-- Christopher Donahue, chief underwriting officer for ACE Private Risk Services, will remain in his current role and will report to Boyd.

-- Lastly, Robert Courtemanche, currently chairman of ACE Private Risk Services, will continue in his role through the close of the transaction. He plans to retire from ACE but will continue to provide guidance and expertise to the organisation until early in the fourth quarter of 2015.