Aspen US Insurance has announced the addition of two new members to subsidiary Aspen Specialty’s US surety team.James Mercier, senior vice-president, associate general counsel and claims, surety and Scott Sadowsky, senior vice-president, finance and operations, will be based in Rocky Hill, Connecticut and will report to Michael Toppi, executive vice-president of Aspen US Insurance.Mr Toppi said: “The addition of Jim Mercier and Scott Sadowsky to the team underscores Aspen’s commitment to building a first class surety franchise. Jim and Scott have over 47 years of combined experience in the surety market and bring a wealth of expertise in claims, legal, finance, technology and operations. I’ve known and worked with Jim and Scott over the years and they bring best-in-class claim and legal expertise, as well as the quantitative and technological competencies required to develop and deploy the credit and portfolio modeling tools necessary to build and sustain a successful surety franchise.”Mr Mercier was previously at a private practice law firm and has more than 25 years of surety underwriting, claims and legal experience, having worked for both Travelers and The Hartford. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in Public Policy and Government from Eastern Connecticut University and a JD from the University of Connecticut.Mr Sadowsky joins Aspen from The Hartford where his responsibilities included field operations and technology. He has more than 22 years of surety underwriting, reinsurance and operational experience at both the field and home office levels and previously worked for NacRe and Travelers. Mr Sadowsky has a BA in Economics from the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from the University of Connecticut School of Business. He attained his Chartered Financial Analyst designation in 1999.