In insurance, a managing general agent is defined legally as "an individual or business entity appointed by an insurer to solicit applications from agents for insurance contracts or to negotiate insurance contracts on behalf of an insurer and, if authorized to do so by an insurer, to effectuate and countersign insurance contracts". (This particular wording is from Kentucky Revised Statutes. Similar wordings can be found in the statutes of Oklahoma, Idaho, Arizona, Nevada, Wyoming, Florida, and Alabama.)