Hub International Caught Up in $42M Lawsuit by South Carolina School District

A South Carolina school district has sued an insurance brokerage and several insurance companies, saying the district was sold excessive policies and charged too much. The Berkeley County School District filed suit in U.S. District Court, seeking more than $42 million from its former chief financial officer, Brantley D. Thomas III; Stanley Pokorney and his son, Scott Pokorney of Knauff Insurance Agency; Chicago-based Hub International Limited, the insurance brokerage firm that acquired Knauff in 2012; and two of Hub’s subsidiaries, including one based in Charlotte, The Post and Courier of Charleston reported. The lawsuit says the school district spent almost $14 million in the last 16 years “to insure itself against “non-existent or nominal risk.” Thomas, 61, pleaded guilty last week to 20 counts including embezzlement, money laundering and public corruption. He has admitted to embezzling almost $1 million from the district and accepting kickbacks from insurance executives. The Hanahan man is awaiting sentencing on the allegations and faces up to 300 years in prison and more than $5 million in fines.