ProAssurance Receives Regulatory Approvals for Transactions with the PICA Group and Georgia Lawyers Insurance Company

BIRMINGHAM, Ala., Jan. 28 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — ProAssurance
Corporation (NYSE: PRA) announced today that all required regulatory approvals
have been granted in connection with its proposed sponsored demutualization of
the PICA Group (PICA), the nation’s leading provider of professional liability
to doctors of podiatric medicine. The proposed demutualization is being
submitted to PICA shareholders for their approval at a special meeting to be
held on March 31, 2009. If approved, the transaction is expected to close
early in the second quarter.

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Upon approval, a total of $120 million will be paid to current and certain
former policyholders in accordance with the plan of demutualization.
ProAssurance will pay cash to purchase all of the PICA stock authorized in the
demutualization; PICA will then use those funds for the cash distribution. In
addition, $15 million in premium credits will be made available to eligible
PICA policyholders for a three-year period beginning in 2010 as the result of
an additional cash payment from ProAssurance.

“The PICA transaction provides a compelling opportunity to add meaningful,
profitable growth as we continue to work to increase our presence in new
markets and new areas of medical professional liability business,” said W.
Stancil Starnes, the Chairman and CEO of ProAssurance.

PICA wrote $99 million in premiums in 2007 and has $284 million in total
assets. The company insures approximately 9,800 podiatric physicians in 47
states and the District of Columbia. The company also insures other healthcare
professionals and provides E&O insurance for a small, but growing, number of
independent insurance agents through its PACO subsidiary.

Update on the Mid-Continent and Georgia Lawyers Transactions

ProAssurance also announced the completion of its acquisition of
Mid-Continent General Agency, a Houston-based Managing General Agent which
produces about $25 million a year in premiums from ancillary healthcare
providers and other professional liability coverages.

Starnes was equally enthusiastic about the opportunities ahead with
Mid-Continent. He said, “We expect Mid-Continent to help us develop a deeper
presence in the professional liability market for ancillary healthcare
providers, a segment of the healthcare industry that is expected to undergo a
rapid expansion in most healthcare reform scenarios.”

ProAssurance also said regulatory approval has been granted to allow its
acquisition of the Georgia Lawyers Insurance Company (GLIC). Shareholders of
GLIC have already approved the transaction, which is expected to close during
the first week of February. GLIC insures approximately 2,700 lawyers in
Georgia and had direct written premium of approximately $5.5 million in 2007.

About ProAssurance

ProAssurance Corporation is the nation’s fifth largest writer of medical
professional liability insurance and is growing its legal professional
liability business. ProAssurance is recognized as one of the top performing
insurance companies in America by virtue of its inclusion in the Ward’s 50 for
the past two years.

SOURCE ProAssurance Corporation