HCC INSURANCE HOLDINGS ANNOUNCES
SETTLEMENT OF CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT
HOUSTON (February 8, 2008) . . .
HCC Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: HCC) announced today that it has
reached a settlement, subject to court approval, with the plaintiffs in
class action litigation relating to the Company’s historic stock option
granting practices.
The company previously announced on January 9, 2008 that it had reached a
settlement in the shareholder derivative litigation regarding the stock
option matter. With today’s announcement, all private securities litigation
pending against the Company regarding the stock option matter has been
resolved.
The terms of the settlement, which includes no admission of liability or
wrongdoing by HCC or any other defendants, provide for a full and complete
release of all claims in the litigation and payment of $10 million to be
paid into a settlement fund, pending approval by the Court of a plan of
distribution. The $10 million will be paid by the Company’s directors’ and
officers’ liability insurers, and will not have a material effect on HCC’s
financial results. Once approved, the settlement will resolve all class
action litigation pending against the Company, as well as its former and
current directors and officers.
“The settlement of this class action lawsuit is another step in the
direction of putting the entire option issue behind us. We are now waiting
to hear the Securities and Exchange Commission’s ruling on the option issue,
which we hope will finally and completely resolve the matter,” HCC Chief
Executive Officer Frank J. Bramanti said.
Headquartered in Houston, Texas, HCC Insurance Holdings, Inc. (HCC) is a
leading international specialty insurance group with offices across the
United States and in Bermuda, Spain, Ireland and the United Kingdom. HCC has
assets of more than $8.0 billion, shareholders’ equity in excess of $2.3
billion and is rated AA (Very Strong) by Standard & Poor’s, AA (Very Strong)
by Fitch Ratings and A+ (Superior) by A.M. Best Company.
For more information, visit our website at
www.hcc.com.
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Contact:
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Barney White, HCC Vice President of
Investor Relations
Telephone: (713) 744-3719
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Forward-looking statements contained in this press
release are made under “safe harbor” provisions of the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and involve a number of
risks and uncertainties. The types of risks and uncertainties which
may affect the Company are set forth in its periodic reports filed
with the Securities and Exchange Commission. |
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