Attorneys’ Title Guaranty Fund Changes Name
September 7, 2023
Effective Sept. 1, Chicago-based title insurance underwriter Attorneys’ Title Guaranty Fund Inc. changed its name to Advocus National Title Insurance Co.
The nearly 60-year-old organization said the name change was driven by its expansion plans. The new name, based on the Latin word for lawyer, honors the organization’s past and embraces the future—as illustrated in this one-minute video.
The legacy organization was founded in 1964 by a small group of Central Illinois lawyers who were part of a movement that recognized consumers needed the benefit of legal counsel when engaging in the largest financial transaction of a lifetime. As a solution, they built a title insurance company based on the lawyer-agent model. In other parts of the country, lawyers of the same mindset were doing the same. The result: Disparate companies separated by state lines using the same name. Facing licensing obstacles and name confusion, the organization opted for a fresh start with a new and meaningful name.
“In exploring directions for a new name and brand, we kept returning to the one thing that sets us apart from other underwriters: Advocacy,” said Peter Birnbaum, president and CEO of Advocus National Title. “It remains our guiding principle. We work to preserve the attorney’s role in real estate transactions for the benefit of the clients we both serve. That’s been our mission since 1964. While we'll always be guided by our core values, now we aspire to be a national underwriter. As we expand our mission into new markets, we will continue to ensure consumers in those markets have access to competent legal counsel when buying or selling a home—as well as provide underwriting services to established title agencies.”
The company said production systems and web domains transferred to the new brand on Sept. 1.
“As ATG, our commitment to lawyers and their clients drove every decision we made,” Birnbaum said. “As Advocus, that commitment remains the same. We are poised for expansion and bringing services to new states, thereby strengthening the position of lawyers in real estate transactions throughout the country. We are excited for this new chapter.”
Advocus National Title is licensed in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Wisconsin, Florida, South Carolina, and Texas. Its subsidiary title agency, Advocus Title Agency, is licensed to do business in 40 states and the District of Columbia.
Contact ALTA at 202-296-3671 or communications@alta.org.