Aon PLC and Willis Towers Watson PLC said they have agreed to terminate their roughly $30 billion deal and end litigation with the Justice Department, which alleged the tie-up would lead to higher prices and reduced innovation for U.S. businesses.
The deal termination follows a Justice Department lawsuit last month that came after an investigation of more than a year. The department said the insurance brokerages’ combination would eliminate competition in several different U.S. product markets, including brokering services for property, casualty and liability insurance, as well as health benefits for large corporate customers.
“We reached an impasse with the U.S. Department of Justice,“ Aon CEO Greg Case said Monday. “The DOJ position overlooks that our complementary businesses operate across broad, competitive areas of the economy.”
Mr. Case added that “the inability to secure an expedited resolution of the litigation brought us to this point.”
Aon said it would pay a $1 billion termination fee to Willis Towers Watson.
