Centerra wasn't part of the settlement between Aon and the plaintiffs, in the case of Williams et al. vs. Centerra Group LLC et al. The agreement, announced last week, requires court approval.
If the court approves the settlement, it would "improperly and unfairly impair the Centerra defendants' rights," the document said.
The terms of the settlement include a bar order, which would prevent the Centerra defendants "from bring subsequent claims against Aon, including for contribution and indemnity," the document said.
In addition, a court-endorsed settlement would damage Centerra's defense in the plaintiffs' ERISA lawsuit which goes to trial on Jan. 8, the document said.
"The Centerra defendants also respectfully move the court to re-set the trial until after the court rules on the settling parties' motion for final approval of settlement," said the document, noting that plaintiffs oppose a trial delay and Aon takes no position.
"Just two months before trial, the Centerra defendants are first learning that Aon will no longer present a defense of its fund selection processes and fund monitoring, so this burden will fall solely on the Centerra defendants without sufficient time to prepare," the document said.
"Given the inextricable entanglement of the claims against the Centerra defendants and Aon, the Centerra defendants will need re-formulate their defense arguments in Aon's absence, with insufficient time to do so," the document said. "Finally, the proposed settlement cannot be approved until months after trial, creating numerous procedural issues and uncertainties at trial.
Centerra, which provides security services, is a subsidiary of Constellis, Herndon, Va.
