Marsh Hearing Postponed Again
A hearing by New Yorks insurance department to possibly revoke the license of mega-broker Marsh has been postponed for a second time in deference to the probe by New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer into industry practices.
The action came as a report was published that Marshs parent, Marsh & McLennan Companies, could be close to settling a civil suit by Mr. Spitzers office that accuses the broker of rigging bids in a price-fixing scheme with major insurers to secure lucrative contingency fees.
A public hearing on Marshs activities scheduled for Jan. 18 was postponed until Feb. 24. The insurance department cited the ongoing investigation by Mr. Spitzer as the reason. The hearing was originally scheduled for late November last year.
Just before the hearing was postponed, The Wall Street Journal reported that Mr. Spitzers office, to settle the suit, was seeking a $750 million penalty payment from MMC, along with a letter of apology. MMC is seeking to settle for $600 million without an admission of guilt, the newspaper said. Neither side would comment on the report.
Reproduced from National Underwriter Edition, January 20, 2005. Copyright 2005 by The National Underwriter Company in the serial publication. All rights reserved.Copyright in this article as an independent work may be held by the author.
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