Grant Thornton administrators sued PwC for €1 billion (£865 million) on Monday for alleged negligence in auditing the Irish insurance company Quinn Insurance.
Michael McAteer and Paul McCann were appointed joint administrators to Quinn Insurance in 2010 following its collapse. They claim that significant losses could have been avoided if PwC had highlighted shortcomings seen in the company accounts.
The pair allege that the Irish insurance company seriously underestimated its reserves available to cover future claims during audits undertaken between 2005-2008.
PwC has denied any misconduct, countering that there were misrepresentations and factual inaccuracies in the administrator’s allegations.
‘These proceedings are unjustified and devoid of merit. The affidavit, accompanying the application, contains factual inaccuracies, misrepresentations of the facts and assertions with which we fundamentally disagree.’ it said in a statement.
It is expected that if any funds are awarded it will be used to repay the government, which advanced the Quinn Insurance more  €1.1 billion to keep it afloat.
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