Exhibit 31(a)


                               CERTIFICATIONS


      I, Mark  E.  Schwarz, Chief  Executive  Officer of  Hallmark  Financial
 Services, Inc. (the "Company"), certify that:

   1.    I have reviewed this annual report on Form 10-K of the Company;

   2.    Based  on my knowledge,  this report  does  not  contain  any untrue
 statement of a material fact or omit  to state a material fact necessary  to
 make the statements  made, in light  of the circumstances  under which  such
 statements were made, not misleading with  respect to the period covered  by
 this report;

   3.    Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial
 information included in this report, fairly present in all material respects
 the financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the Company
 as of, and for, the periods presented in this report;

   4.    The  Company's other  certifying officer  and I are responsible  for
 establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures [as  defined
 in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e)] for the Company and have:

      a)    designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused  such
 disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under our supervision,  to
 ensure that  material information  relating to  the Company,  including  its
 consolidated subsidiaries,  is  made known  to  us by  others  within  those
 entities, particularly  during the  period in  which  this report  is  being
 prepared;

      b)   evaluated the effectiveness of  the Company's disclosure  controls
 and procedures  and  presented in  this  report our  conclusions  about  the
 effectiveness of the disclosure  controls and procedures, as  of the end  of
 the period covered by this report based on such evaluation; and

      c)   disclosed in  this report  any change  in the  Company's  internal
 control over financial  reporting that  occurred during  the Company's  most
 recent fiscal quarter (the Company's fourth fiscal quarter in the case of an
 annual report)  that has  materially affected,  or is  reasonably likely  to
 materially affect, the Company's internal control over financial  reporting;
 and

   5.  The Company's other certifying officer and  I have disclosed, based on
 our most recent evaluation of internal control over financial reporting,  to
 the Company's auditors  and the audit  committee of the  Company's board  of
 directors (or persons performing the equivalent functions):

      a)   all significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design
 or  operation  of  internal  control  over  financial  reporting  which  are
 reasonably likely  to  adversely affect  the  Company's ability  to  record,
 process, summarize and report financial information; and

      b)   any fraud, whether  or not material,  that involves management  or
 other employees  who  have a  significant  role in  the  Company's  internal
 control over financial reporting.


 Date:     March 30, 2005

                                    /s/ Mark E. Schwarz
                                    -----------------------------------------
                                    Mark E. Schwarz, Chief Executive Officer