| Bar Bulletin |
April,
2003 |
| MSBA News |
|
Legal Mutual Promotes Stewart to
Executive Vice President
~ Focus on Quality of Service to Maryland Lawyers ~
By Janet Stidman Eveleth
After eight years
as the General Manager of the Legal Mutual Liability Insurance Society of
Maryland, the only attorney malpractice insurance company endorsed by the
Maryland State Bar Association, Walter E. Stewart, Jr. has been promoted
to Executive Vice President. Stewart, whose priorities include financial
stability and growth for Legal Mutual and quality service for Maryland
lawyers, is pleased with the confidence Legal Mutual’s Board of Directors
has placed in him with this promotion.
“Walt has done an
excellent job operating the company on a day-to-day basis and this
promotion is a sign of our confidence in his ability to continue to do
so,” declares Cleaveland D. Miller, Chairman and CEO of Legal Mutual’s
Board of Directors. “It recognizes his talent and the energy he has
exerted on behalf of Legal Mutual since 1995. We feel this new position is
more in line with what Walt is doing on a day-to-day basis, as it truly
reflects the degree of responsibility he exercises.”
Today, Legal Mutual
is recognized as the Maryland lawyer’s resource for malpractice insurance.
In addition to satisfying their professional liability needs, Maryland
lawyers also turn to Legal Mutual for a full range of insurance services
for their commercial and personal needs. This lawyer-oriented company now
functions as a one-stop insurance shop, offering a comprehensive package
to support law firms, along with outstanding service to lawyers. Attorney
disability, health and life insurance, however, are provided by the Bar
Insurance Trust.
Stewart is proud of
the strides Legal Mutual has made in the last eight years. Working with
Legal Mutual’s Board, Stewart and his Legal Mutual team have expanded the
company’s image and visibility in Maryland’s legal community and enhanced
the company’s stellar reputation for quality service. He has strengthened
the company’s financial standing and helped it attain a very high
financial rating from Demotech and A.M. Best. Under Stewart’s direction,
Legal Mutual has added new insurance products, improved its risk
management services, expanded its CLE offerings, enhanced its marketing
efforts and developed its online service package.
Catering to the
needs of lawyers, Legal Mutual has expanded its website and electronic
services so that lawyers may conveniently conduct transactions online and
electronically obtain and complete applications and forms. Legal Mutual
clients now receive the company’s newsletter, The Solicitor, online
to keep them apprised of current insurance rates, trends and news. A
wealth of information about Legal Mutual and Maryland’s
legal community is found on its website, www.legalmutual.com.
In addition,
Stewart has developed broad exposure for Legal Mutual across the state’s
legal community and forged close ties with the Maryland State Bar
Association. Legal Mutual sponsors MSBA events, including the welcoming
party at MSBA’s Annual Meeting, participates in its Professionalism
Course, provides speakers and CLE programs at MSBA meetings, is involved
in the annual Bar Presidents’ Conference and provides articles for MSBA
publications. In the greater law community, it works with and supports
MICPEL, MVLS and the Pro Bono Resource Center, hosting a fundraiser golf
outing with proceeds earmarked for the Center.
In his new role as
Executive Vice President, Stewart will continue to oversee operations
while he tackles new challenges. Miller sees his new responsibilities
focusing on Legal Mutual’s strategic planning for the future. “In these
changing economic times, the insurance market is tightening,” stresses
Miller. “We want Walt to look into where the company has been and where it
ought to be going in the next five years. Then, interacting with the Board
and Executive Committee, we need to determine what (if any) changes are
warranted in Legal Mutual’s mission.”
“Legal Mutual faces
both challenges and opportunities in the future,” Miller continues. “It
was created by MSBA in 1986 with the help of the Legislature to deal with
hard insurance markets as they affect Maryland lawyers. We are now
confronting the first hard market since Legal Mutual was founded. Today,
more than ever, Maryland lawyers are looking to Legal Mutual for help with
malpractice insurance.”
“The insurance
industry is cyclical, and many of the insurance products that popped up in
our soft market are now disappearing or raising rates significantly,” adds
Miller. “Legal Mutual tries to bring stability to the market as well as
even pricing. Our challenge now is to meet this extensive growth in terms
of demand and market stability to continue to support Maryland lawyers.”
“I will continue to
focus on our quality service and try to win more attorneys over to Legal
Mutual,” states Stewart. “Today’s market is extremely hard; it’s tough to
get coverage, and costs are rising. Legal Mutual only writes insurance in
Maryland and is here for the long haul. Maryland attorneys need to support
us on a continual basis so we can stabilize their rates.”
“Maryland lawyers
really need us as a long-term viable insurance market in the state,”
emphasizes Stewart. Legal Mutual’s goal is to stabilize the insurance
marketplace for Maryland attorneys and support Maryland’s legal community.
The goal of the new Executive Vice President is to make this happen and to
continue Legal Mutual’s tradition of quality service to Maryland lawyers.
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