has been acquired by

Liberty Insurance Brokers

Acted as the exclusive financial advisor to Liberty Insurance Brokers in its sale to Brown & Brown, Inc.  Liberty and its affiliate companies were founded by Scott Engel in 1996 and provide commercial and personal lines insurance for the multi-family residential industry primarily in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.  As part of the transaction, Scott Engel and his team will combine with Brown & Brown PA’s existing Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania profit center under the leadership of Rob Heller. 

has been acquired by

Tri-State and Primero

Acted as the exclusive financial advisor to Tri-State and Primero in its sale to Nodak Mutual.  Tri-State is a retail sales/service general insurance agency and Primero underwrites specialty automobile insurance in Arizona, Nevada, North Dakota, and South Dakota through independent agents.  Primero is rated “A” by Demotech Inc.  Current President Herb Hill will retire and Vice Presidents Ryan Hill and Broch Hill will continue handling the claims and marketing for Tri-State and Primero.

has been acquired by

Cowles & Connell

Acted as the exclusive financial advisor to Cowles & Connell in its sale to Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.  Established in 1892, Cowles & Connell is a managing general agent and wholesale insurance broker which provides excess and surplus, property/casualty, professional business liability and other specialty insurance products and services to their independent retail insurance broker clients throughout the United States.  Jo Ann Peri and her associates will continue to operate from their locations in Brewster, NY; Meriden, CT; Westampton, NJ and Wilbraham, MA under the direction of Joel Cavaness, President of Risk Placement Services, Inc., a subsidiary of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.

has been acquired by

L&R Benefits

Acted as the exclusive financial advisor to Windsor, CT- based L&R Benefits, LLC in its sale to Arthur J. Gallagher & Co.  L&R provides employee benefit consultation, management and brokerage services for their clients’ active and retired employees throughout the Northeast.  They focus on employee benefit compliance, design, financing, administration and communications.   The two principals, Robert Lindberg and William Lindberg, and their associates will continue to operate in their current location under the direction of David Ziegler, leader of Gallagher’s eastern employee benefit consulting and brokerage operations. 

has been acquired by

S.H. Smith & Company

Acted as the exclusive financial advisor to S.H. Smith & Company, Inc. (S.H. Smith) in the merger of its assets and operations into R-T Specialty, LLC (R-T), a unit of Ryan Specialty Group, LLC.  S.H. Smith, headquartered in Hartford, CT, was formed in 1982 by Scott Smith, and is licensed in 50 states.  S.H. Smith manages its business across four segments:  Professional & Management Liability; Commercial Property & Casualty; In-House Underwriting and Program Business. R-T will be able to expand its presence in the Northeast as well as expand its binding authority capabilities. 

has sold certain assets to

EGI Financial Holdings

Acted as the exclusive financial advisor and agent to EGI Financial Holdings Inc. of Toronto which operates in the property and casualty insurance industry in Canada, the United States and Europe in the sale of its United States non-standard automobile insurance operations.  EGI announced that it has entered into a definitive stock purchase agreement with White Pine Insurance Company, a Michigan-based specialty insurance company, to sell EGI Insurance Services, Inc. and all subsidiary companies, including American Colonial Insurance Company, a Florida domiciled insurance company and EGI Insurance Services (Florida), Inc., a Florida-based managing general agency.  American Colonial is currently writing new and renewal non-standard automobile insurance in Florida.

has sold certain assets to

Professional Risk Placements

Acted as the exclusive consultant to Professional Risk Placements, LLC (PRP), in the sale of assets to The McGowan Companies (McGowan).  PRP was established in 1996 and has become one of the pre-eminent writers of Professional & Management Liability on the East Coast.  Under the McGowan name, PRP will be responsible for writing Professional & Management Liability in Connecticut, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania.

has acquired

Strickland Insurance Brokers

Acted as the exclusive consultant to Strickland Insurance Brokers, Inc. (SIB), a wholly owned subsidiary of the Strickland Insurance Group, Inc., in its acquisition of Tower Transportation Underwriters, Inc. (Tower Underwriters).  Tower Underwriters is a Managing General Agency that has been servicing the needs of agents in Virginia and Delaware since 1963.  The company, which has specialized in commercial and public transportation risks since its founding, will become part of Strickland Insurance Brokers, Inc., and continue to provide its agents with high quality service and products.

has sold certain assets to

Utica Mutual Insurance Company

Acted as the exclusive financial advisor to Utica Mutual Insurance Company in the sale of its brokerage division, Special Risk Solutions, Inc. (SRS), to W.N. Tuscano Agency.  SRS is a wholesale insurance broker that offers a wide range of commercial and personal lines coverages.  SRS will begin doing business under the Tuscano brand on December 3, 2012 and will operate under Tuscano’s management.  Utica agents will have immediate access to the many specialty products and markets that Tuscano offers.

has acquired certain assets of

Electric Insurance Company

Acted as the exclusive financial advisor to Electric Insurance Company in the renewal rights acquisition of the preferred personal lines business of Millers First Insurance Company and Millers Classified Insurance Company (collectively “Millers First Group”).  This transaction will allow Electric Insurance to provide renewal quotes for preferred direct response  personal automobile, homeowners, and related insurance policies in Wisconsin, Illinois, and Missouri.  This transaction will also provide potential policyholders with the ability to access one of the most highly acclaimed customer service departments in the insurance industry.