Castle Law Office Blog | Missouri & Illinois Bankruptcy Legal Blog

Landamerica Financial Group Obtains Bankruptcy Protection

On November 26, title insurer LandAmerica Financial Group announced its plans to file for bankruptcy protection, while competitor Fidelity National Financial Inc. announced that it will be acquiring three subsidiaries of LandAmerica.

The bankruptcy filing of LandAmerica’s holding company and subsidiary LandAmerica 1031 Exchange Services Inc. was announced mere days after Fidelity National, which is based out of Jacksonville, Florida, canceled an agreement to purchase all of LandAmerica, which is based out of Richmond, Virginia. The terms of that deal called for LandAmerica to be acquired by Fidelity National in an all-stock acquisition for approximately $128.4 million.

Chicago Title Insurance Co., a subsidiary of Fidelity National, is to acquire Commonwealth Land Title Insurance Co. for $158.6 million. Another Fidelity National unity, Fidelity National Title Insurance Co., is to acquire Lawyers Title Insurance Corp. and United Capital Title Insurance Co. for $139.4 million.

The units being purchased by Fidelity National remain solvent and continue operating.  The acquisitions are expected to close as early as late December.