Mr. Greenberg, 91, complained at a news conference on Monday of being outspun by the attorney general’s office on Friday, when it somewhat unexpectedly announced a settlement in a 2005 civil accounting fraud case against him
that was brought by Eliot Spitzer when he was state attorney general.
Tries to Fight the Headlines -
Maurice R. Greenberg, the often combative former chief executive of American International Group, began a news media counteroffensive
on Monday to repair his legacy days after the bruising end to his 12-year court battle with the New York State attorney general.
The $9.9 million settlement included carefully written statements in which Mr. Greenberg
and his co-defendant, Howard I. Smith, A. I.G.’s former chief financial officer, took responsibility for the two transactions at issue in the case.
Fraud Case.” The Wall Street Journal said, “Greenberg Settles Civil-Fraud Allegations in AIG Case.”
The dollar figure represents part of the performance bonuses the defendants received in the four years that A. I.G’.
Yet a headline in Mr. Schneiderman’s announcement said, “Greenberg Admits to Initiating, Participating
and Approving Two Fraudulent Transactions” while he ran A. I.G.
The state had sought more than $50 million in bonuses the defendants had received for those years, including interest,
and unsuccessfully sought to bar Mr. Greenberg from the securities industry or from serving as an official of a public company.