Marsh & McLennan Agency sues Alliant, former employees

Marsh & McLennan Agency said in a lawsuit filed in federal court in New York that Alliant Insurance Services Inc. and five former employees conspired to attract business from its clients in violation of nonsolicitation and confidentiality agreements.

The Marsh & McLennan Cos. Inc. unit said in the lawsuit, Marsh & McLennan Agency LLC v. Alliant Insurance Services et al., that the brokers previously worked at a Bend, Oregon, branch of PayneWest Insurance Inc., which it purchased in April 2021.

MMA said in the lawsuit, filed Wednesday, that Alliant followed its “established pattern of growing its business” by recruiting Travis Davis, Susan Coetzee, Keegan Richardson, Raiza Robles and Amanda Gunn and inducing them to transfer their clients.

MMA filed a similar suit against Newport Beach, California-based Alliant in December.

Mr. Davis was a part owner and sales executive for PayneWest and signed a restrictive covenant protecting MMA’s confidential information after the acquisition. By 2024, Mr. Davis’ book of business generated more than $1 million of revenue annually, court records show.

In March 2024, Alliant began recruiting Mr. Davis, who then convinced members of his client support team to join Alliant, the lawsuit states. MMA said more than 30 of its clients have left to do business with Alliant since Mr. Davis’ resignation.

White Plains, New York-based MMA seeks declaratory and injunctive relief as well as compensatory and punitive damages for alleged breaches of the former brokers’ restrictive covenants, trade secret misappropriation, tortious interference with contract and breach of fiduciary duty.

Representatives for the parties did not respond to requests for comment.