NEW YORK, Oct. 22, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- Murray, Frank & Sailer LLP announces a class action lawsuit on behalf of purchasers of the securities of The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. ("Hartford" or the "Company") (NYSE: HIG) between November 5, 2003 and October 13, 2004, inclusive (the "Class Period").
The complaint charges Hartford, Ramani Ayer, David M. Johnson, David K. Zwiener, Robert J. Price and Thomas M. Marra 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 entered into and concealed illegal contingent commission agreements that it entered into with other insurance companies, including Marsh, Inc., a subsidiary of Marsh & McLennan, Inc.; (2) that the Company engaged in bid-rigging whereby the Company agreed to provide brokers with artificial quotes which were not justified by underwriting analysis; (3) that as a result of the bid-rigging, the defendants guaranteed Hartford material amounts of business; (4) that by concealing these "contingent commissions" and such "contingent commission agreements" the defendants violated applicable principles of fiduciary law; and (5) that as a result, the Company's prior reported revenue and income was grossly overstated.
On October 14, 2004, Attorney General Eliot Spitzer ("Spitzer") filed a suit against Marsh & McLennan, Inc., alleging that it steered unsuspecting clients to insurers with whom it had lucrative payoff agreements, and that the firm solicited rigged bids for insurance contracts. Spitzer's complaint also named Hartford as an alleged participant in bid-rigging. On these revelations, the Company's shares fell $3.78 per share, or 6.08 percent, to close at $58.40 per share on unusually high trading volume on October 14, 2004. By October 15, 2004, shares of Hartford fell another $2.10 per share, or 3.60 percent, to close at $56.30 per share.
Murray, Frank & Sailer LLP and its predecessor firms have devoted its practice to shareholder class actions and complex commercial litigation for more than thirty years and have recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for shareholders in class actions throughout the United States.
If you purchased or otherwise acquired Hartford securities on any exchange between November 5, 2003 and October 13, 2004, and sustained damages, you may, no later than December 14, 2004, move the Court to serve as lead plaintiff. Shareholders outside the United States may also join the action, regardless of which exchange was used to purchase the securities. To serve as lead plaintiff, however, you must meet certain legal requirements. You can join this class action as lead plaintiff online at http://www.murrayfrank.com/CM/NewCases/NewCases.asp. If you would like to discuss this action, this announcement, or your rights and interests, please contact plaintiff's counsel Eric J. Belfi or Aaron D. Patton of Murray, Frank & Sailer LLP.