Paul J. Ritter was named the new president and CEO of The Cumberland Insurance Group, replacing Robert P. Brady, who retired after 33 years of service to the company.

Paul J. Ritter

Brady will remain a member of the board of the directors for the New Jersey-based regional personal and commercial lines insurer.

“Paul Ritter is ready, willing, and able to assume the leadership of The Cumberland Insurance Group,” said Board Chairman Leo T. Hogan in a statement.

Hogan called Ritter “a consummate professional with a long track record of making sound business decisions and successful team building,” saying the new CEO has “already demonstrated his grasp of the business challenges and his ability to get things done.”

Hogan added that Brady’s leadership “has been a big part of the company’s growth and operational success” in the last decade.

Ritter joined Cumberland Insurance in 1999 as the assistant secretary to the board of directors.  Prior to joining Cumberland Insurance, Ritter served as senior vice president, chief financial officer and corporate secretary for the Farmers and Merchants National Bank in Bridgeton, N.J., and as a lawyer for the Chance and McCann law firm in Bridgeton.

“I want to thank the Board for their confidence in me,” Ritter said in a statement.  “I have big shoes to fill in taking over as President and CEO from such an accomplished professional as Bob Brady, but I look forward to the challenge.”

Brady called Ritter “an integral member of our leadership team for several years [who] has made many significant contributions to our ongoing success.”

The Cumberland Insurance Group serves 120,000 policyholders in the states of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Maryland.