Former insurance executive Greg Lindberg must pay over $167 mn to a Dutch life insurer Conservatrix N.V. after a prolonged dispute over solvency capital ratios with Trier Holding B.V. The U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina issued the order, according to BestWire.
Dutch regulations require insurers to maintain a solvency capital ratio of at least 100%. In March 2019, Trier agreed to keep Conservatrix’s ratio at 135%. However, by August, the ratio fell below the minimum threshold, according to the complaint.
In December 2019, Conservatrix initiated arbitration, demanding Trier fulfill its obligation. On Jan. 31, 2020, the Netherlands Arbitration Institute ordered Trier to restore the shortfall within 60 days or pay €150 mn. Trier also had to cover arbitration and legal fees but did not comply.
In April 2020, Trier sought to nullify the award in a Dutch appeals court, but Conservatrix entered liquidation before the case concluded. The conservators pursued the award, which the appeals court upheld in March 2022. The Supreme Court of the Netherlands reaffirmed the decision in September 2023.
The defense argued that arbitration decisions do not qualify as “foreign country judgments” under the North Carolina Uniform Foreign-Country Money Judgments Recognition Act, which determines the recognition of foreign judgments.
The defense also contended that the Dutch rulings were not “judgments” but rather a series of orders and rulings that did not explicitly adopt the arbitral award. Eagles disagreed, stating that the defense provided no evidence to support the claim that a foreign court must explicitly label an order as a “judgment” or adopt a monetary award.
Eagles’ recent order affirmed that the Federal Arbitration Act allows several grounds for refusing a foreign arbitration award, such as if the decision is nonbinding or has been overturned by a competent foreign authority.
However, the defense failed to meet these standards.
While Dutch courts originally ordered Lindberg to pay €150 mn, Eagles noted that judicial norms allow for conversion to dollars, resulting in a final amount of $166.6 mn.
By Steve Hallo, senior associate editor, BestWire
