Mar. 30--CNA Financial Corp.'s former Chairman and Chief Executive Stephen Lilienthal -- helped by a $13.4 million severance payment received after a highly unsuccessful year -- pulled down $20.5 million in compensation in 2008, the Chicago insurance company disclosed in a Monday regulatory filing.

Lilienthal's departure was announced last autumn, a period in which CNA posted a painfully large third-quarter loss and disclosed that it would issue $1.25 billion in preferred stock to controlling stockholder Loews Corp. to bolster its weakened capital position. Lilienthal didn't leave the company until Jan. 1, however, when he was succeeded by former Chubb Corp. executive Thomas Motamed.

In proxy materials filed Monday, CNA said Lilienthal was paid an unchanged salary of $950,000 last year, and as in 2007r received no cash bonus. Under Securities and Exchange accounting rules, CNA recorded $2.2 million in costs for options that vested with the executive in 2008 and another $3.1 million in costs for restricted stock that vested during the year.

The most prominent part of the pay package was the $13.37 million Lilienthal received under his separation agreement.

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