Mercury Insurance 2007 Annual Report Download - page 88

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86 MERCURYNOW 2007
EVALUATION OF DISCLOSURE AND PROCEDURES
The Company maintains disclosure controls and procedures designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in the Company’s reports
filed under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified
in the Securities and Exchange Commission rules and forms, and that such information is accumulated and communicated to the Company’s
management, including its Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, as appropriate, to allow for timely decisions regarding required
disclosure. In designing and evaluating the disclosure controls and procedures, management recognizes that any controls and procedures, no matter
how well designed and operated, can provide only reasonable assurance of achieving the desired control objectives, and management necessarily
was required to apply its judgment in evaluating the cost benefit relationship of possible controls and procedures.
As required by Securities and Exchange Commission Rule 13a-15(b), the Company carried out an evaluation, under the supervision and with
the participation of the Company’s management, including the Company’s Chief Executive Officer and the Company’s Chief Financial Officer,
of the effectiveness of the design and operation of the Company’s disclosure controls and procedures as of the end of the period covered by this
report. Based on the foregoing, the Company’s Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that the Company’s disclosure
controls and procedures were effective at the reasonable assurance level.
CHANGES IN INTERNAL CONTROL OVER FINANCIAL REPORTING
There has been no change in the Company’s internal control over financial reporting during the Company’s most recent fiscal quarter that has
materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the Company’s internal control over financial reporting. The Company’s process for
evaluating controls and procedures is continuous and encompasses constant improvement of the design and effectiveness of established controls
and procedures and the remediation of any deficiencies which may be identified during this process.
MA NAGEMENT’S REPORT ON I NTERNAL CONTROL OV ER FINANCIAL REPORTI NG
The management of the Company is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting. The Company’s
internal control system was designed to provide reasonable assurance to the Company’s management and board of directors regarding the preparation
and fair presentation of published financial statements.
All internal control systems, no matter how well designed, have inherent limitations. Therefore, even those systems determined to be effective
can provide only reasonable assurance with respect to financial statement preparation and presentation.
The Company’s management assessed the effectiveness of the Company’s internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2007.
In making this assessment, it used the criteria set forth by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO)
in Internal Control — Integrated Framework. Based upon its assessment, the Company’s management believes that, as of December 31, 2007, the
Company’s internal control over financial reporting is effective based on these criteria.
The Company’s independent auditors have issued an audit report on the effectiveness of the Company’s internal control over financial
reporting.
CORPORATE CERTIFICATIONS
The Company has included as Exhibit 31 to its 2007 Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission certificates
of its Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer regarding the Company’s public disclosure. In addition, the Company has submitted to
the New York Stock Exchange a certificate of its Chief Executive Officer certifying, without qualifications, that he is not aware of any violation
by the Company of New York Stock Exchange corporate governance listing standards.
CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES
CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES