Fifteen summers ago, as the result of hard work from the
volunteer MBA Insurance Committee, led by Stephen A. Roach, the MBA
Insurance Agency was born. Tapped by leadership to run the new
agency, Terence J. Welsh began business with a staff of five. Now,
after considerable growth in size, an increased amount of products
available to MBA members and a staff of nearly a dozen, the MBAIA
celebrates its 15th anniversary.
The 15-year-old agency continues to offer what it was
established to back in 1997 -- affordable, high quality policies
for its members.
"The insurance agency was a great innovation for the MBA. The
agency provided the ability for our members to control the securing
of malpractice insurance while at the same time being a great
benefit to the MBA itself," said Kenneth J. Vacovec, who served as
MBA president from 1996 to 1997.
Shortly before being formed, the MBA Insurance Committee was at
a crossroads to either go with a newly merged broker or begin its
own agency. The association launched its own agency, giving control
to the very constituents it served --membership. Insurance
Committee member Owen Gallagher recalls that "the perceived risk
was huge," but the committee and the Executive Management Board
were "quite willing" to not be at the mercy of the market and to
maintain more control over rates and premiums. "The opportunity was
there," he added.
"The MBA is a great organization. They protect the small firm,"
said Roach, who explained that through the Insurance Committee and
Agency, market research is done for the small firm practitioner,
who often doesn't have time to research and negotiate rates and
terms.
"It's a tight policy that will protect you," said Roach, who
credits a knowledgeable committee and Welsh for making certain that
is the case.
"The quality and expanse of the coverage is beyond others," said
Insurance Committee Chair Richard Eurich. "There is strength in
numbers."
Looking back on the agency's progress since 1997, Eurich says
that today, the agency has grown to be a "ship on a smooth glass
lake," making much progress from its start in 1997, when there were
many "unknowns."
With 15 years of experience under its belt, the agency replaced
those many "unknowns" with expertise in providing sophisticated
risk control to protect MBA members' policies from the hard and
soft cycles involved with the insurance market.
"The Association's insurance program is the gold standard for
professional liability insurance programs around the nation. It is
a member-designed program that has been crafted by fellow MBA
practitioners to the benefit of the practicing bar," said Martin W.
Healy, MBA chief operating officer and chief legal counsel.
To learn more about how the products of the MBA Insurance
Agency can benefit you and your practice, visit www.massbarinsurance.com.