About Us

About Us

Our Pillars

Service

Innovation

Solutions

Our Mission

We combine a legacy of service with a passion for innovation to offer unparalleled insurance solutions.

Meet The Team

Executive Chairman

Terry Ledbetter serves as Executive Chairman of Kestrel Group.  Terry co-founded State National Companies in 1973 and served as Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer until his retirement at the end of 2019. Terry pioneered the dedicated fronting business model in the property & casualty industry and guided State National through its IPO in 2014 and sale to Markel Corporation in 2017.  Terry has deep relationships with some of the most respected carriers, reinsurers, managing general agencies, wholesale brokers, regulators, ratings agencies & capital providers in the world. He received his B.B.A. from Southern Methodist University.

President & Chief Executive Officer

Luke Ledbetter serves as President & CEO of Kestrel Group.  Luke previously served as Chief Underwriting Officer and Head of Business Development with State National Companies. During Luke’s time at State National, gross written premium grew to more than $2.5 billion annually. He has deep relationships across the entire property & casualty value chain. Luke holds law degrees from Cambridge University and the University of Texas School of Law in addition to a B.A. from University of Texas at Austin. Prior to joining State National Companies, Luke practiced law with Baker Botts L.L.P.

Chief Financial Officer

Rod Newcomer serves as Chief Financial Officer of Kestrel Group.  Rod is a CPA and has over 25 years of experience in the Property/Casualty insurance industry.  His most recent role was working as the Corporate Controller for State National Companies for 15+ years where his responsibilities included financial reporting, Program Services operational accounting, budgeting and forecasting, and the tax and actuarial functions. Rod graduated from the University of Texas at Arlington with a BBA in Accounting and a MBA in Finance. Prior to joining State National Companies, Rod also previously worked in the Accounting/Finance functions for XL Capital and the Republic Group of Insurance Companies.

Chief Underwriting Officer

Duncan McColl serves as Executive Vice President and Chief Underwriting Officer for Kestrel Group.  He has over 18 years of experience in the insurance/reinsurance industry.  Before joining Kestrel Group, he was a Senior Vice President at State National where he was a member of both the Reinsurance and Credit & Underwriting Committees.  Prior to that he was at AM Best where he was a member of the Credit Rating Policy Committee and was responsible for the AM Best Credit Rating Methodology and the Rating Analyst Training program.  Duncan began his insurance career with Marsh in New York as a surplus lines broker.  He is graduate of LSU, Rutgers Business School and is a CFA Charterholder.

General Counsel

Elise Clarke serves as General Counsel of Kestrel Group.  Elise has been a practicing attorney since 2011, with extensive legal experience in regulated industries, including property and casualty insurance.  Elise previously served as Corporate Counsel with State National Companies, where she provided general legal and regulatory support and negotiated complex reinsurance relationships.  Elise holds a law degree from Cornell Law School in addition to a B.B.A. in Corporate Finance from The University of Texas at Austin.  Prior to joining State National Companies, Elise began her legal career practicing law with Baker Botts L.L.P.

Senior Vice President of Business Development

Dan Dijak serves as Senior Vice President of Business Development for Kestrel Group.  He has over 18 years of experience in the global specialty insurance and reinsurance markets, most recently as the Head of US Insurance Markets at Vesttoo. Dan has built strong relationships within the MGA and reinsurance ecosystem. Prior to Vesttoo, Dan was a Director at AM RE Syndicate where he played an integral role in the growth of the specialty P&C treaty reinsurance portfolio. Dan also held senior underwriting roles at StarStone (now Core Specialty). Dan graduated from the University of Dayton (OH) with a B.B.A. in Finance and Economics