Court Gives Go-Ahead for Independent Appraisal in WTC Loss

A New York court ruled Aug. 19 that Larry Silverstein, the leaseholder of the World Trade Center, and his insurers should appoint independent appraisers who should make an attempt to come to an agreement on the value of the destroyed complex, according to a Reuters report.

The decision is a move to try and bring the two sides closer in settling their dispute over how much money Silverstein should receive following the destruction of the WTC on Sept. 11, 2001. Silverstein places his losses at $8.2 billon, while insurers are looking more in the lower to middle $2 billion range.

Silverstein argues that he is entitled to a pair of payouts, saying the terrorism involved the crashing of two planes, making it separate events.

The ruling is viewed as a victory for German insurer Allianz AG, whose U.S. unit asked the judge to rule that the clause allowing both sides to appoint independent appraisers was valid.

It is viewed as a defeat for Silverstein, whose lawyers stated that the clause was invalid as the matter of all losses arising from Sept. 11 should be under the guise of New York federal court only.