Dennis J. Hayes

Special Deputy Superintendent

Dennis J. Hayes is the Special Deputy Superintendent of the New York Liquidation Bureau (“NYLB”).  He had previously served as Assistant Special Deputy Superintendent of the NYLB since April 2007, and held key executive positions in the NYLB since joining its staff in 1996.

Mr. Hayes has 27 years experience as an attorney specializing in insurance, reinsurance and receivership matters.  As Assistant Special Deputy Superintendent, he oversaw the Reinsurance and Estate Management Divisions.

In his previous NYLB position as Executive Director for Receivership Operations, Mr. Hayes developed the final plan for the successful rehabilitation of Interboro Mutual Indemnity Insurance Company and its conversion to Interboro Insurance Company.  He also managed the rehabilitation of Rochdale Insurance Company.

From 2001 to 2003, Mr. Hayes was Executive Vice President and General Counsel to Recovery National Corporation in Tarrytown, NY, a company specializing in identifying and recovering unrealized reinsurance.

Mr. Hayes started his career in the insurance industry in 1982 as an attorney for the New York Insurance Exchange.  As an attorney in private practice from 1987 to 1996, he specialized in insurance, reinsurance and regulatory matters.

A longstanding member of the Insurance Law Committee of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, Mr. Hayes has participated as a panel member in various CLE programs on reinsurance recoveries and is the author of “Identifying and Recovering Reinsurance: A Receiver’s Perspective,” in the Journal of Reinsurance (Vol. 8 No. 4, Fall 2001).

Mr. Hayes is a 1974 magna cum laude graduate of Saint Leo University, where he received the school’s general excellence award, and a 1981 graduate of St. John’s University School of Law.  He and his wife, Marianne, have two children.

Mary Jo Marchisello

First Assistant Special Deputy Superintendent and Chief of Staff

Mary Jo Marchisello is the First Assistant Special Deputy Superintendent and Chief of Staff for the New York Liquidation Bureau.  Ms. Marchisello is responsible for handling the daily operations of the Bureau.

During Ms. Marchisello’s 23-year tenure at the Bureau, she has primarily worked in its Legal Division where she has held several positions including Managing Attorney, Attorney of Record and Director of the Legal Division.

Before joining the Bureau, Ms. Marchisello practiced law at Wilson, Elser, Edelman and Dicker where she specialized in handling disputes involving the professional liability of architects and engineers.   Thereafter, Ms. Marchisello served as Vice President and General Counsel for IDBI Managers, Inc. an entity that helped small companies and entrepreneurial enterprises insure industrial development bond funding.   Also, as an American Arbitration Association trained arbitrator, she presided over disputes for the New York Stock Exchange and the National Association of Security Dealers.

Ms. Marchisello’s significant public service includes serving as a Mediator for the New York State Supreme Court, Commercial Division Alternative Resolution Program, a Small Claims Arbitrator for the Civil Court of the City of New York and a volunteer training coach for mediators.  Ms. Marchisello also serves on the New York State Commission on Quality Care.

Ms. Marchisello received her bachelor’s degree in Chemistry from Trinity College in Washington, D.C. and her law degree from St. John’s University School of Law.

John Pearson Kelly

Assistant Special Deputy Superintendent and General Counsel

John Pearson Kelly is an Assistant Special Deputy Superintendent and the General Counsel for the New York Liquidation Bureau (“NYLB”).  He previously served as Chief Compliance Officer.  As Assistant Special Deputy Superintendent and General Counsel, Mr. Kelly will provide legal advice to the Special Deputy Superintendent and oversee the functions of the Bureau’s Legal Division.

Prior to joining the Bureau, Mr. Kelly worked in the New York State Attorney General’s Office, initially as an Assistant Attorney General in the Criminal Prosecutions Bureau, then as Chief of the Auto Insurance Fraud Unit.  The Unit employed 50 attorneys, investigators and analysts to investigate and prosecute auto insurance fraud, especially no-fault insurance conspiracies, through wiretaps and undercover operations.  Among his many achievements, in May of 2006, Mr. Kelly tried and convicted the leader of a staged accident ring in Bronx Supreme Court.

Before joining the Attorney General’s Office, Mr. Kelly was in private civil practice and handled numerous trials, appeals, arbitrations and mediations in his focus areas of commercial and insurance law, trusts and estates, and architectural and engineering malpractice.  He also spent six years as an Assistant District Attorney in Kings County, where he tried more than 30 felony cases, nearly half of them homicides, and served as Trial Supervisor to the Sex Crimes and Special Victims Bureau.

Mr. Kelly earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from Harvard College with a specialization in English and American Literature and Language and his Master of Arts degree from the Department of Philosophy of Claremont Graduate School.  He received his Juris Doctor with Honors from The Ohio State University College of Law.

Tarik F. Ajami

Assistant Special Deputy Superintendent and Chief Compliance Officer

Tarik Ajami is an Assistant Special Deputy Superintendent and the Chief Compliance Officer of the Bureau.  His primary areas of responsibility include legal and policy compliance, ethics oversight, internal and fraud investigations, audit, emergency management, and internal policies and controls.

A lawyer since 1995, Tarik was most recently the Bureau’s Deputy General Counsel from October 2007 to October 2009.  Before joining the Bureau, he was Deputy General Counsel for the New York City Department of Homeless Services, one of the largest social services agencies in the country.  Before that, he was a litigator.   As a partner at the law firm of Outten & Golden LLP and an associate with Levy Ratner, P.C., both in New York, he practiced primarily in the areas of federal, state and administrative litigation, nationwide class and complex litigation, labor and employment law, employee benefits and compensation, arbitration, dispute resolution, and negotiation.  He has written and spoken extensively on these and other topics.

Tarik began his legal career as a staff law clerk in the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, and then as an elbow clerk to the Hon. Ronald L. Ellis in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, both in Manhattan.  He holds a B.A. in English from the University of Michigan and a J.D. from the City University of New York School of Law.

Francesca G. Bliss

Assistant Special Deputy Superintendent

Francesca Bliss is the Assistant Special Deputy Superintendent responsible for the oversight and coordination of intake operations and the Estate Management Division.

Ms. Bliss joined the New York Liquidation Bureau (“NYLB”) in 1979 as a member of the “rehab” team at Empire Mutual Insurance Company, where she oversaw Claims and implemented training programs.  Ms. Bliss has served as an on-site claims manager at various companies in receivership (Nassau, Ideal Mutual, American Fidelity Fire and Midland Insurance companies) and as the on-site Administrator for several NY insolvencies, including the New York Insurance Exchange, Union Indemnity, First Central Insurance Company, Frontier Insurance Company in Rehabilitation, MDNY and INSCORP.

In 1989, Ms. Bliss was promoted from the Assistant Director of Claims to Director of Creditor and Ancillary Operations on the Receivership side n/k/a Estate Management.  As Director, Ms. Bliss established a Dividend Committee to implement the distribution of assets and closure activity on all domestic estates and New York Reg. 41 proceedings and as the administrator of the New York Ancillary Receiverships.  Additionally, Ms. Bliss stepped in as Assistant Special Deputy Superintendent and Chief Operating Officer of NYLB from August 2006 to April 2007.

Ms. Bliss played an active role in having the New York Security Funds join the National Conference of Insurance Guaranty Funds (“NCIGF”), where she has participated on technical support groups, Coordinating Committees and is now a member of the Best Practices Committee.  Since 1992, Ms. Bliss has also been the New York Superintendent’s representative on all working groups for the National Association of Insurance Commissioners Insolvency Task Force, and chaired the NAIC Working Group responsible for the recently published Receivers’ Handbook for Insolvencies.

Ms. Bliss is a member of the International Association of Insurance Receivers (“IAIR”), where she served two terms on the Board of Directors, held the office of Secretary and currently serves as an active member of the Publications Committee.  She is also a member of the Board of Directors of the New York Claims Association.

Ms. Bliss is a graduate of Marymount/Fordham University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science.

Administrative Services

"Customer Service" is the paramount objective of the Administrative Services Division. It provides administrative and operational support to the NYLB through timely and economical procurement of goods and services, as well as effective administration of facilities maintenance, records management and office services.

Claims

The Claims Division ensures the prompt and equitable disposition of claims that meet the criteria for coverage under the New York Security Fund, thereby contributing to the NYLB's efforts to close the proceedings of Estates in a timely manner.

Estate Management

The Division of Estate Management oversees the administration of liquidating and settling the affairs of insolvent insurers and assists the Superintendent in discharging his responsibilities as Receiver of New York Liquidations, Rehabilitations, Conservations and Ancillary Proceedings.  The Division ensures compliance with applicable statutes, regulations, and policies and adherence to established procedures and controls in the adjudication of all creditors’ claims, the distribution of domestic estates’ assets to creditors in accordance with §7434 of the Insurance Law and the expedited closure of the insolvency proceedings.

Finance

The Finance Division of the NYLB safeguards the assets within the Bureau’s jurisdiction by maintaining and exercising internal accounting, reporting and financial controls and procedures. State-of-the-art technology, systems and business practice enable the division to effectively administer the NYLB’s financial activities, in a cost-efficient manner, for the benefit of claimants and creditors.

Human Resources

The Human Resources Division protects the NYLB, minimizing risk to the estates' assets by ensuring compliance with the various laws regulating the workplace, and by promoting fair and equitable treatment of its employees. The division also codifies and implements policies and procedures to ensure the effective operation of the NYLB. The Human Resources Division's functions include administration and recordkeeping, employee benefits, compensation, employee and labor relations, employment, and training and development.

Information Technology Systems (ITS)

The Information Technology Systems (ITS) Division provides technical information, support and services to its clients, the NYLB's employees, as well as maintaining the Bureau's computers and telecommunication equipment.

Investigations

The Investigations Division conducts thorough investigations of potentially fraudulent claims and activities that could prevent the NYLB from efficiently and expeditiously performing the necessary proceedings to liquidate and rehabilitate estates in accordance with the policies, rules, regulations and statutes of the New York State Insurance Law.

Please submit a report if you are aware of any potentially fraudulent insurance activity or official misconduct by a Liquidation Bureau employee or vendor.

Legal

The Legal Division ensures that the NYLB properly fulfills the Superintendent's duties as Receiver and various duties as Administrator of the Security Fund. The Legal Division represents the Superintendent as Receiver and provides advice, drafts and reviews contracts and proposed legislation.

Reinsurance

The Reinsurance Division monitors and collects the reinsurance assets of the insolvent domestic insurers on behalf of the Superintendent as Receiver to assist in maximizing recovery by creditors and the timely closing of estates.  This is accomplished by adjudicating reinsurance proofs of claim, allowance of assumed claims, audits, billing reinsurance recoverables, pursuing collections, commutations and release agreements, filing proofs of claim in ancillary proceedings, applying letters of credit and processing assumed accounts.