ACE?s top female executive may have been aware of bid rigging requests to underwriters under her from brokers at Marsh & McLennan nearly a year ago according to the Wall Street Journal.

The front page report ? from the financial newspaper read daily by millions ? yesterday reported that ACE USA president and CEO Susan Rivera was warned in an internal company e-mail in November 2003 that the company was being asked by Marsh brokers to ?rig? bids. Five months later New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer?s launched a probe of the industry.

But the Bermuda-based company reportedly did not change its bidding process, except to alter the terminology it used to refer to these kinds of bids.

The Journal report said the e-mail suggested that knowledge of the practice was known of at the higher levels of ACE, and could leader to charges against ACE Ltd. and/or its senior executives by Mr. Spitzer.

Mr. Spitzer unveiled stinging allegations against the industry when he made public a lawsuit against Marsh & McLennan on Thursday.

Although Marsh has been the only defendant named, the complaint did implicate several insurers ? including ACE, AIG, Hartford and a Munich Re subsidiary ? as participants with Marsh in the bid rigging process.

Mr. Spitzer alleged that Marsh brokers chose which insurer was going to get what business but would ask other insurers to submit higher quotes to create the sham appearance of competition.

Insurers are said to have played along because they knew they would get other business from Marsh. Insurers are also under fire for fat commission payments it made to Marsh in exchange for business being sent their way.

Also yesterday, two class action lawsuits were launched against ACE in connection with the bid rigging allegations from Mr. Spitzer.