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Welcome to the Gallagher Insurance Brokerage Antitrust Settlement Website
This website provides general information on a class action settlement that affects the rights of all persons who engaged the services of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (“Gallagher”) or any other Broker Defendant in connection with the purchase or renewal of insurance or reinsurance from any insurers during the period from August 26, 1994 through December 31, 2005, inclusive, you could be entitled to participate in a class action settlement pursuant to which you would receive monetary relief. A settlement has been reached between the Plaintiffs and Gallagher (the “Gallagher Settlement”). Please see the Notice of Proposed Class Action Settlement, Settlement Hearing and Right to Appear, and Claim Form (“Notice Packet”) on the link at the left for a listing of all Gallagher Entities, Broker Defendants and Insurer Defendants. The Gallagher Settlement, which is subject to Court approval, has been reached in a class action lawsuit alleging that Gallagher, the Broker Defendants and the Insurer Defendants violated federal and state antitrust laws, the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, and common law through (i) practices by which the Insurer Defendants in connection with the placement and renewal of insurance contracts and (ii) contracts, agreements, arrangements and understandings about the payment of commissions that are contingent upon, among other things, Gallagher and the Broker Defendants placing a particular number of policies or dollar value of premium with the Insurer Defendants. Gallagher has denied the allegations and denies any and all liability, but has agreed to a cash Settlement of $28 million dollars, plus interest. Gallagher has also agreed to pay all of the costs associated with implementing and administering the Gallagher Settlement including the cost of disseminating notice to Settlement Class Members. In addition to the monetary benefit provided by the Gallagher Settlement, Gallagher has adopted or has agreed to adopt certain business reforms as more full explained in paragraph 10 of the Notice Packet. Also, after all of the terms of the Gallagher Settlement had been agreed to, Gallagher and the Plaintiffs reached an agreement on attorneys’ fees and expenses to be paid by Gallagher in addition to the other benefits provided by the Gallagher Settlement. Gallagher, subject to the approval of the Court, has agreed to pay attorneys’ fees and expenses to Class Counsel in an amount not to exceed $8,850,000.
On August 31, 2007, the Court approved the Gallagher Settlement. One objector to the Court’s order approving the Gallagher Settlement has filed an appeal from that order. On April 20, 2009, the appellate court heard argument on the appeal. The Judges took the matter under advisement and have not issued a decision. The proceeds of the Gallagher Settlement cannot be distributed until the appeal is resolved. It is unknown when this appeal will be resolved, neither the Settlement Administrator nor Counsel knows the value of the distribution. If you are a Settlement Class Member who purchased or renewed a policy during the period August 26, 1994 through December 31, 2005 where any related broker, administrative, advisor or claim services were provided by Gallagher or you purchased or renewed an insurance policy from any insurer through any of the Broker Defendants, and you want to be considered for a payment, you should have submitted a Claim Form (see link at left) to the Settlement Administrator at the address listed in the Notice with a postmark date no later than November 16, 2008. If you now wish to submit a Claim Form, you can do so my mailing it to the Settlement Administrator. The Claim Form will be marked late and there is no guarantee that the Court will accept your Claim Form. Settlement Class members had the right to exclude themselves from the Settlement Class or file an objection to the Settlement. The deadline to object or request exclusion has passed. Deficiency letters were mailed on March 9, 2009. A deficiency letter was mailed to those Claimants that filed Claim Forms and their Claim Form was missing critical information, making it deficient in some way. If you received a deficiency letter, please follow the instructions in the letter and return your response, with the original letter you received, to the Settlement Administrator. Your response should have been postmarked no later than April 7, 2009. Please contact the Settlement Administrator if you have any questions.
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