Farmers Insurance has named former Chairman of the Barger & Wolen law firm and insurance and litigation partner, Steven Weinstein, as its new General Counsel.

Weinstein is replacing Frank Ceglar, a 36-year veteran of Farmers, who retired.

In his new position, Weinstein will oversee the company’s legal department, including its litigation team, in addition to providing legal guidance to the enterprise and its leadership.

During his years in private practice, Weinstein handled a wide-range of insurance regulatory matters, complex business litigation and bad faith litigation. As a lawyer who specialized in administrative law and insurance regulatory matters, he has represented insurers before a number of Departments of Insurance across the nation. He also has a recognized expertise in federal and state class actions, unfair trade practice litigation, regulatory litigation, and litigation involving agents and brokers.

Weinstein also co-authored a number of chapters in the Matthew Bender treatise entitled “California Insurance Law and Practice Guide,” including the chapter on rate regulation.

He was recently appointed as a Board Member of the California Insurance Guarantee Association by California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones and named to its Audit Committee.