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| ERIE > SEC Filings for ERIE > Form 8-K on 8-Feb-2013 | All Recent SEC Filings |
8-Feb-2013
Other Events
Erie Indemnity Company (the "Registrant") received a Complaint on February 6, 2013, that is captioned "Erie Insurance Exchange, an unincorporated association, by members Patricia R. Beltz, Joseph S. Sullivan and Anita Sullivan, and Patricia R. Beltz, on behalf of herself and others similarly situate, Plaintiffs, vs. Richard L. Stover; J. Ralph Borneman, Jr.; Terrence W. Cavanaugh; Jonathan Hirt Hagen; Susan Hirt Hagen; Thomas B. Hagen; C. Scott Hartz; Claude C. Lilly, III; Lucian L. Morrison; Thomas W. Palmer; Martin P. Sheffield; Elizabeth H. Vorsheck; and Robert C. Wilburn, Defendants". The Complaint was filed on February 6, 2013, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania. The individuals named as Plaintiffs are alleged to be policyholders (subscribers) of the Erie Insurance Exchange (the "Exchange"). The individuals named as Defendants comprise the Board of Directors of the Registrant.
The Complaint asserts many of the same allegations made in an action brought against the Registrant by, among others, Plaintiffs Joseph S. Sullivan, Anita Sullivan and Patricia R. Beltz that was previously described by the Registrant in its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q which was filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on November 1, 2012.
The Complaint asserts two causes of action: (1) a class action claim brought by
Plaintiff Patricia R. Beltz on behalf of all policyholders of the Exchange and
(2) a non-class action claim brought by the Plaintiffs on behalf of the
Exchange, or, in the alternative, a derivative claim brought by the Plaintiffs
on behalf of the Exchange. Both causes of action are based on allegations that
the Defendants breached their fiduciary duties to the Exchange by causing the
Registrant to retain Services Charges (installment fees) and Added Services
Charges (late fees and policy reinstatement fees) that should have been paid to
the Exchange. The first cause of action seeks damages plus pre-judgment and
post-judgment interest and costs of suit on behalf of the class consisting of
all policyholders of the Exchange. The second cause of action seeks compensatory
and punitive damages plus post-judgment interest and costs on behalf of the
Exchange. The Complaint alleges that the total of the Services Charges and
Additional Services Charges retained during the period from 1998 through 2011
amounted to approximately $308 million.
Reference is made to the Registrant's "Safe Harbor" Statement that is set forth in its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, which was filed with the Commission on November 1, 2012, which is incorporated herein by this reference. In addition to the forward-looking statements and risk factors listed in that "Safe Harbor" Statement, there can be no assurance regarding the final disposition of the matters asserted in the Complaint. Registrant undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events, changes in assumptions, or otherwise.
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