Subprime write-downs and lawsuits

Advisen continues to cover the subprime story and the potential for impact on the commercial lines insurance industry.

Last week we published a report detailing the 112 firms who have reported subprime-related write-downs totalling over $170b and cross-referencing that list against Advisen's database of subprime-related lawsuits. The Daily Telegraph covered our report today and their article can be found here.

The lawsuit database now contains 138 records, the top 5 causes are listed below as are the defendants with more than 2 cases:

Type of action and number of actions
Securities class action 41
Fraudulent trade practices 41
ERISA class action 13
Underwriting malpractice 12
Securities fraud 11

Defendant and number of actions
Bear Stearns 6
Citigroup 6
Fremont General 6
Merrill Lynch 5
State Street 5
Washington Mutual 5
Beazer Homes 3
Countrywide Financial 3
HSBC 3
JP Morgan 3

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