APCapital to Acquire Minority Interest in PIC Wisconsin

East Lansing, Mich.-based medical liability insurer American Physicians Capital Inc. announced that its subsidiary, American Physicians Assurance Corp. has entered into a stock purchase agreement as of September 17, 2004, with various shareholders of Physicians Insurance Company of Wisconsin Inc. to acquire a substantial minority interest in the company.

The agreement states that APA will purchase 4,450 shares of PICW common stock at a purchase price of $3,800 per share in cash, which is slightly below PICW’s statutory book value per share as of Dec. 31, 2003.

If the transaction is completed, APCapital will own about 22.7 percent of PICW’s outstanding shares as of Sept. 13, 2004, with a total investment of about $17 million. The closing of the purchase is subject to various conditions, including the receipt of approval from Wisconsin’s Office of the Commissioner of Insurance (OCI). APCapital has been informed that PICW intends to oppose its request for OCI approval.

PICW is based in Madison, Wis., and is the leading provider of medical professional liability insurance in Wisconsin.