W. R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB) today announced the appointment of John K. Goldwater as senior vice president. Mr. Goldwater will have oversight responsibility for certain of the Company’s operating units. James B. Gilbert will succeed Mr. Goldwater as president of BerkleyNet Underwriters (“BerkleyNet”). The appointments are effective immediately.

Mr. Goldwater has more than 40 years of experience in the commercial property and casualty insurance industry. He has served as president of BerkleyNet, a W. R. Berkley operating unit that leverages technology, underwriting and claims expertise to deliver real-time workers’ compensation solutions for small and mid-sized business, since its inception in 2006. Mr. Goldwater received a Bachelor of Business Administration in Property-Liability Insurance from The College of Insurance in New York.

Mr. Gilbert has nearly 25 years of experience in property casualty insurance. He served alongside Mr. Goldwater as BerkleyNet’s senior vice president of actuarial and operations since its 2006 founding, having held senior actuarial positions at other workers’ compensation insurance organizations prior to joining BerkleyNet. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Statistics from the University of Florida, is a Member of the American Academy of Actuaries (MAAA) and an Associate of the Casualty Actuarial Society (ACAS), and holds the Associate in Risk Management (ARM) and Certified Workers' Compensation Professional (CWCP) designations.

William R. Berkley, chairman of the board and chief executive officer of W. R. Berkley Corporation, said: “We are pleased to have John assume this new position. His deep knowledge of the workers’ compensation business and hands-on experience in managing one of our start-up operating units will be invaluable to our corporate oversight activities. At the same time, we are confident in Jim’s ability to take over the leadership role at BerkleyNet and continue to build upon its success.”

Founded in 1967, W. R. Berkley Corporation is an insurance holding company that is among the largest commercial lines writers in the United States and operates in three segments of the property casualty insurance business: Insurance-Domestic, Insurance-International and Reinsurance-Global.