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DeWitt Stern Group, Inc.
The DeWitt Stern Group is a privately-held, New York City-based insurance brokerage and risk advisory firm. National in scope, the firm also has offices in North White Plains NY, Jersey City NJ, Chicago IL, and in two California locations: San Francisco and Glendale.

Founded in 1899 by its namesake, DeWitt H. Stern, the firm is led by the founder’s grandson, Jolyon F. Stern, who represents the third generation of family ownership. The firm was ranked by Business Insurance as 62d among the top 100 insurance brokers in 2008. Risk & Insurance&reg;, another insurance industry trade publication, designated four of the firm's Fine Art and Entertainment-Media specialists as Power Brokers in 2007 and 2008. The magazine writes, "Power Brokers will do whatever it takes" for their clients.

Notable clients
DeWitt Stern offers risk management solutions suited to each of its client's needs, be they professionals, corporations, or individuals. These clients range from international corporations, banks, law firms, and notable classical artists to influential individuals in finance, government, law, accounting, entertainment, media, and art. The firm's individual clients have included: Antoinette Perry (namesake of the Tony Awards&trade;), violinist Isaac Stern, Albert Einstein, and the prominent actors Bette Davis, Jose Ferrer, and Yul Brynner.

Providing solutions to complex insurance problems
DeWitt Stern has developed innovative and individual approaches to providing risk solutions. Examples include formulating cost-sensitive programs for real estate companies and providing broad insurance coverage for fine art and volatile overseas film projects. These risks can be complex and particularly hard-to-place. In fact, “the firm’s entertainment practice—its flagship—provides insurance brokerage and risk management services to some of the largest, most well-known businesses in the theatrical, film, television and music industries,” according to an article published in Rough Notes, an insurance industry publication.

Areas of expertise

 * Entertainment, Film and Media (including film and television, music and touring, special events, theater/live performance, and venues)
 * Commercial Risk (property, casualty, automobile, workers’ compensation, directors and officers liability [D&O]/employment practices liability)
 * Employee Benefits (medical, dental and vision, life and long-term disability, long-term care, retirement investment, and key executive and business planning)
 * Personal Risk Management and Family Offices (homeowners, personal auto, flood/earthquake/mold, private collections)
 * Real Estate
 * Business Management (property, casualty, private collections, specialty coverage, D&O/employment practices liability, and life/high limit disability)
 * Fine Arts (fine art collections, fine art dealers and galleries, fine art museums and traveling exhibitions, conservation studios, fine art warehouses and packing facilities, auction houses, art lenders, fine wine dealers and collectors, antiquarian book dealers and collectors, and musical instruments)
 * Professional Corporations and Partnerships
 * Restaurants and Hospitality
 * Rental Houses
 * Marine and Aviation

Company milestones

 * 1899—DeWitt H. Stern Co., Inc. is founded with offices at 66 Pine Street in New York City.
 * 1904-1905—The firm is appointed agents for Fireman's Fund and Chubb & Son and has maintained these relationships ever since.
 * 1921—DeWitt Stern takes the claims report for an "injured" Cadillac that required replacement of a mud-guard for $56.
 * 1932—DeWitt A. Stern enters the family business a day after graduating from Princeton University.
 * 1956—The firm pioneers insurance on collectibles especially for its numismatic clients
 * 1960s to Present—DeWitt insures theatrical companies and the arts, placing insurance for Hair, Cats, Jesus Christ Superstar, Amadeus, and Rent, among others.


 * 1974—The firm celebrates its 75th year by electing DeWitt A. Stern as chairman and Jolyon F. Stern as president.
 * 1980s to Present—DeWitt Stern begins insuring musical events for The Backstreet Boys, Chicago, The Rolling Stones, and Simon & Garfunkel.
 * 1990s to Present—The firm insures Fine Arts risks including prominent private collections and public institutions like The Museum of the City of New Yorkand The Noguchi Museum, located in the borough of Queens.
 * 1991—DeWitt Stern opens an office in Los Angeles, California.
 * 1994—DeWitt Stern opens an office in Jersey City, New Jersey, where its marine insurance practice resides.
 * 1999—The firm opens offices in Nashville, Tennessee to establish a local presence to the city's music industry.
 * 2004 to Present—Continuing its expansion, DeWitt Stern's service capabilities extend across the nation. Today the firm has over 180 employees.