Insurance firms settle World Trade Center dispute with developer

0 Comments | AFP, May, 2007

NEW YORK (AFP) — A group of insurance companies has reached a two-billion-dollar settlement with the developers of the World Trade Center over payouts related to the September 11 attacks, officials said Wednesday.

New York Governor Eliot Spitzer said that the agreement by seven insurance firms settled all outstanding claims made by developer Larry Silverstein in relation to the attacks more than five years ago.

"The unsettled insurance claims were the last major barrier to rebuilding and have been bitterly and intensely contested for almost six years," Spitzer said in a statement.

"The settlement is the result of an extensive collaborative effort by many and it ensures that the Port Authority and Silverstein Properties will have the financial resources to...