SPOTLIGHT: ARIS Title Insurance Corporation

By Jill A. Ellman

An average person’s encounter with title insurance is likely as a contract guaranteeing clear title of real property in connection with a real estate transaction.  A purchaser of real estate property today would not fathom completing the transaction unless the property in question has clear title.  Yet, the purchase of art title insurance is a comparatively new notion in the art world where multi-million dollar sales are a common occurrence.  Currently, ARIS is the leading seller of fine art title insurance.  ARIS is the creation of attorney Lawrence M. Shindell and former insurance executive Judith L. Pearson.  Both had a mutual client that needed a unique insurance policy to cover a specific World War II-related risk.  The research process that ensued led to the inception of ARIS, which obtained New York State regulatory approval to sell insurance in 2006.  In November 2010, the insurer Argo Group, which underwrites specialty insurance and reinsurance products, purchased the company, allowing for the expansion of ARIS’s insurance practice.   Arguably, the ability to insure title to art is a better alternative to litigation over title disputes and authenticity.  This article explores what ARIS covers, examines some of the issues ARIS faces underwriting art risk, and discusses solutions that may assist in minimizing such risk.

The ARIS Policy