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Donald P. Kennedy, who led growth of First American Financial, dies at 93

By E. Scott Reckard,March 28, 2012

First American Financial was known as Orange County Title and had only one office when Donald P. Kennedy, fresh out of law school, joined the family firm in 1948.

When Mr. Kennedy began leading the title insurance company’s expansion beyond the county lines in 1957, it had annual sales of less than $1.5 million.

By 2006, First American was one of the world’s largest title insurers and was developing vast databases that helped transform the real estate industry. It had hundreds of offices in the United States and abroad and revenue topping $8 billion — an expansion attributed to Mr. Kennedy, who died March 24 at 93 in his home in Santa Ana, Calif. No cause of death was reported.

Donald Parker Kennedy was born Oct. 16, 1918, in San Jacinto, Calif. He attended Stanford University, where he played on the 1939 golf team that won an NCAA Division 1 championship and earned a bachelor’s degree in political science in 1940.

After serving in the Navy during World War II, he joined Orange County Title, founded by his grandfather, Charles E. Parker, in 1894. He delved into the business of tracking property sales and assuring buyers that transactions weren’t clouded.

Shrewd and engaging, Mr. Kennedy gave his managers broad leeway in how they operated. That was important because real estate practices varied from region to region and the customer could be a lawyer, real estate broker or lender depending on the location.

He was named chairman emeritus of First American in 2003 but remained on its board until 2008, going to the office consistently until he was 90.

First American Financial split into separate public companies in 2010: First American, which handles the original escrow and title business, and CoreLogic, a real estate and consumer data provider. The companies’ combined stock-market value exceeds $3.4 billion.

Survivors include his wife of 65 years; three children, including a son, Parker Kennedy, who is now First American’s chairman; six grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.

— Los Angeles Times