IAG GC to depart role immediately for alleged behavioural matters
Insurance Australia Group has parted ways with its group general counsel, with the ASX-listed company stating its top lawyer’s behaviour had “fallen short” of its ethics and conduct expectations.
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On Wednesday, 6 December, Insurance Australia Group posted a market announcement detailing that Peter Horton, its group general counsel and company secretary, is leaving the company and will cease as company secretary, effective immediately.
Nick Hawkins, who is the managing director and chief executive for the ASX-listed insurer, said in the statement that the company had concluded that Mr Horton’s behaviour had “fallen short of the expectations” in its employee code of ethics and conduct.
“This includes the importance of being inclusive and respectful, and we will hold people to account if they fail to meet these expectations,” Mr Hawkins submitted.
Mr Horton was appointed as IAG’s group general counsel back in late 2019, having formerly served as executive manager of legal, governance and risk at TransGrid.
Prior to this, he was the group GC and company secretary at both QBE Insurance and Woolworths. He is also a non-executive director for Business for Development, a not-for-profit that “aims to reduce extreme poverty through inclusive economic growth”.
The announcement follows the listed company’s notice, on 28 November, that Andrew Collings had been appointed as an additional company secretary as of that date.
In that market announcement, IAG said that both Mr Horton and group company secretary Jane Bowd would continue in their roles as company secretaries for the insurer.
IAG will shortly commence its search for a replacement for Mr Horton, the company concluded.
Jerome Doraisamy
Jerome Doraisamy is the editor of Lawyers Weekly. A former lawyer, he has worked at Momentum Media as a journalist on Lawyers Weekly since February 2018, and has served as editor since March 2022. He is also the host of all five shows under The Lawyers Weekly Podcast Network, and has overseen the brand's audio medium growth from 4,000 downloads per month to over 60,000 downloads per month, making The Lawyers Weekly Show the most popular industry-specific podcast in Australia. Jerome is also the author of The Wellness Doctrines book series, an admitted solicitor in NSW, and a board director of Minds Count.
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