Shareholder Class Action Filed Against ACE Limited by the Law
Firm of Schiffrin & Barroway, LLP
BALA CYNWYD, Pa., Oct. 18 /PRNewswire/ -- The following statement was issued
today by the law firm of Schiffrin & Barroway, LLP: Notice is hereby given that a class action lawsuit was filed in the United
States District Court for the Southern District of New York on behalf of all
securities purchasers of ACE Limited (NYSE:ACE) ("ACE" or the "Company") from
October 28, 2003 through October 13, 2004, inclusive (the "Class Period").
If you wish to discuss this action or have any questions concerning this notice
or your rights or interests with respect to these matters, please contact
Schiffrin & Barroway, LLP (Marc A. Topaz, Esq. or Darren J. Check, Esq.)
toll-free at 1-888-299-7706 or 1-610-667-7706, or via e-mail at .
The complaint charges ACE, Evan Greenberg, Brian Duperreault, and Philip V. Bancroft with violations of Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange
Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 promulgated thereunder. More specifically, the
complaint alleges that the Company failed to disclose and misrepresented the
following material adverse facts which were known to defendants or recklessly
disregarded by them: (1) that the Company was paying illegal and concealed
"contingent commissions" pursuant to illegal "contingent commission
agreements"; (2) that by concealing these "contingent commissions" and such
"contingent commission agreements" the defendants violated applicable
principles of fiduciary law, subjecting the Company to enormous fines and
penalties totaling potentially tens, if not hundreds, of millions of dollars;
(3) that defendants had concealed the fact that ACE had engaged in illegal
transactions; and (4) that as a result, the Company's prior reported revenue
and income was grossly overstated.
On October 14, 2004, CBS MarketWatch issued an article entitled "Spitzer
attacks insurance industry; NY Attorney General sues Marsh over commissions."
The article stated in part: "In his latest move in a high profile campaign
against corporate wrongdoing, Eliot Spitzer charged several of the nation's
largest insurance companies and the largest broker with bid rigging and pay-
offs that the New York Attorney General says violate fraud and competition
laws." Additionally, "Spitzer unveiled a lawsuit Thursday against the world's
largest insurance broker Marsh & McLennan for a common industry practice known
as "contingent commissions." Contingent commissions are paid by insurance
companies to reward brokers for sending business their way. Critics claim the
payments encourage brokers to sell policies from those insurance companies
offering the highest commissions, rather than the ones most suited to their
customers." Also on October 14, 2004, ACE issued the following statement: "The Attorney
General of the State of New York filed a civil lawsuit today against Marsh &
McLennan Companies, Inc. and Marsh Inc. This is an outgrowth of the Attorney
General's investigation into broker compensation practices. Although ACE is
not named as a defendant, ACE and several other insurers are referenced in the
complaint. We have been cooperating with the Attorney General's office since
earlier this year in this matter, and we intend to continue to cooperate fully
with the investigation." On these revelations, the Company's shares fell $3.84 per share, or 9.53
percent, to close at $36.47 per share on October 14, 2004 on unusually high
trading volume.
On October 15, 2004, CBS MarketWatch issued an article entitled: "ACE Manager
Pleads Guilty in Probe." The article stated in part: "Patricia Abrams, an
assistant vice president in the excess casualty division of ACE, pleaded guilty
to charges that she was involved in bid rigging, according to Brad Maione, a
spokesman for Spitzer." Additionally, "[f]rom September 2002 to September
2004, Gregory Doherty and others at Marsh periodically instructed Abrams and
others at ACE to submit quotes for insurance coverage that were higher and less
competitive than those of incumbent carriers, said Maione, citing the Spitzer's
complaint against Abrams." Following this revelation, shares of ACE fell another 4 percent, or $1.49 per
share, to close at $34.98 per share on October 15, 2004.
Plaintiff seeks to recover damages on behalf of class members and is
represented by the law firm of Schiffrin & Barroway, which prosecutes class
actions in both state and federal courts throughout the country. Schiffrin &
Barroway is a driving force behind corporate governance reform, and has
recovered in excess of a billion dollars on behalf of institutional and high
net worth individual investors. For more information about Schiffrin &
Barroway, or to sign up to participate in this action online, please visit
http://www.sbclasslaw.com/ If you are a member of the class described above, you may, not later than
December 17, 2004 move the Court to serve as lead plaintiff of the class, if
you so choose. A lead plaintiff is a representative party that acts on behalf
of other class members in directing the litigation. In order to be appointed
lead plaintiff, the Court must determine that the class member's claim is
typical of the claims of other class members, and that the class member will
adequately represent the class. Under certain circumstances, one or more class
members may together serve as "lead plaintiff." Your ability to share in any
recovery is not, however, affected by the decision whether or not to serve as a
lead plaintiff. You may retain Schiffrin & Barroway, or other counsel of your
choice, to serve as your counsel in this action.
CONTACT: Schiffrin & Barroway, LLP
Marc A. Topaz, Esq. Darren J. Check, Esq. Three Bala Plaza East, Suite 400
Bala Cynwyd, PA 19004
1-888-299-7706 (toll-free) or 1-610-667-7706
Or by e-mail at DATASOURCE: Schiffrin & Barroway, LLP CONTACT: Marc A. Topaz, Esq. or Darren J. Check, Esq., Schiffrin & Barroway, LLP, +1-888-299-7706 (toll-free) or +1-610-667-7706, Web site: http://www.sbclasslaw.com/
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