Equitable Financial Life Insurance Company, known until 2020 as AXA Equitable, has been the target of several major lawsuits and regulatory actions tied to its life insurance and annuity products. The largest is the Equitable AXA life insurance lawsuit known as Brach Family Foundation v. AXA Equitable Life Insurance Company, which produced a $307.5 million class settlement approved in October 2023 over cost-of-insurance rate hikes on Athena Universal Life II policies. A separate line of cases concerns the company’s EQUI-VEST variable annuities, where the SEC obtained a $50 million penalty in 2022 and a private class action followed in 2024. A new law-firm investigation opened in June 2026 into additional universal life rate increases outside the Brach settlement.
The Athena Universal Life II Cost-of-Insurance Case
In October 2015, AXA Equitable announced cost-of-insurance (COI) rate increases on roughly 1,700 Athena Universal Life II (AUL II) policies. The hikes ranged from 25% to 70% and targeted policies with a face value of $1 million or more where the insured was at least 70 years old when the policy was issued. The new rates took effect on March 8, 2016. AXA attributed the change to expectations that future mortality and investment performance would be “less favorable” than originally projected for that block.1vLex. In Re AXA Equitable
COI is usually the biggest monthly deduction from a universal life account. When AXA raised it, policyholders faced sharply higher charges. Those whose account values could not absorb the new rate had to pay additional premiums out of pocket or watch their coverage lapse.1vLex. In Re AXA Equitable
The Brach Family Foundation sued in the Southern District of New York (Case No. 1:16-cv-00740) before Judge Jesse M. Furman. The complaint alleged AXA had breached its policy contracts and had concealed an intent to raise COI rates as far back as July 10, 2006, while still sending policyholders illustrations that did not reflect the planned increases. AXA denied wrongdoing and maintained the increase was consistent with the contracts and applicable regulations.2AXA COI Litigation. Settlement Website Related cases followed in Arizona federal court and from life-settlement investors, with two filings in California federal court and four in New York state court.3Orrick. The New Wave of Life Settlement Litigation
The $307.5 Million Settlement
The parties settled for up to $307,500,000. The deal covered three overlapping groups of AUL II policyholders hit by the October 2015 increase: a nationwide class for policy-based claims, a nationwide class for illustration-based claims (excluding policies with a Lapse Protection Rider issued after July 10, 2006), and a New York sub-class of the illustration group.2AXA COI Litigation. Settlement Website
Judge Furman held the fairness hearing on October 17, 2023, and granted final approval the same day. Final Judgment was entered October 25, 2023. Class members did not have to file claims. JND Legal Administration distributed payments automatically, calculated in proportion to each policyholder’s share of COI overcharges collected through March 31, 2023, after deducting administration costs, attorney fees and expenses, and service awards.4AXA COI Litigation. Frequently Asked Questions Class counsel Susman Godfrey received roughly $101 million in fees plus $4.1 million in costs.5USA Herald. Susman Godfrey to Get $101M in Landmark Settlement Against AXA Equitable At least three distribution rounds have gone out, with the court granting class counsel’s motion for a third distribution.6AXA COI Litigation. Documents
The COI increase was expected to bring in about $1.3 billion in revenue for Equitable. On the company’s first-quarter 2024 earnings call, CFO Robin Raju said the settlement and related legal accruals had cut that gain by roughly $600 million. The Q1 2024 report included $106 million in legal expenses tied specifically to the settlement.7ThinkAdvisor. Lawsuit Cuts Equitable’s $1.3B Gain on a Universal Life Price Hike
New Investigation Into Other Universal Life Policies (2026)
The COI issue is not closed. In June 2026, the law firm Migliaccio & Rathod LLP announced an investigation into whether Equitable has improperly raised COI charges on older universal life policies beyond those covered by Brach. The firm cited reports of sudden, unexplained monthly increases, account values falling faster than expected, policyholders being forced to pay extra premiums to keep coverage in force, and notice letters that did not explain the basis for the change. As of June 2026 no lawsuit had been filed; the firm was gathering information from affected policyholders.8Migliaccio & Rathod LLP. Equitable AXA Universal Life Insurance Investigation
EQUI-VEST Variable Annuity Fee Cases
A separate track of litigation involves EQUI-VEST, Equitable’s variable annuity sold mainly through 403(b) and 457(b) retirement plans to public school teachers and staff. On July 18, 2022, the SEC charged Equitable with sending materially misleading account statements to about 1.4 million investors. Since at least 2016, quarterly statements had prominently listed a “Fees and Expenses” line that frequently read $0.00, even when significant fees were being charged. The disclosed administrative and transaction fees captured under 3% of what Equitable actually collected from the products; the largest charges were left off entirely.9ASPPA Net. Equitable Hit $50 Million Penalty Over Misleading Fee Statements
Without admitting or denying the findings, Equitable agreed to pay a $50 million civil penalty into a Fair Fund for investors who held EQUI-VEST accounts between January 1, 2016, and July 18, 2022. Reimbursement was based on how long the account was held and how much in undisclosed fees the investor paid. Equitable also had to mail each current and former investor a copy of the SEC’s order, overhaul its quarterly statements to itemize all fees, and certify compliance to the SEC.10Business Record. Equitable to Pay $50M to Variable Annuity Investors in SEC Settlement
Devlin Private Class Action
Private litigation followed. On July 16, 2024, DiCello Levitt LLP filed Devlin v. Equitable Financial Life Insurance Company in the Northern District of Illinois, alleging violations of Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. The complaint claims Equitable charged significant undisclosed fees on EQUI-VEST annuities held in 403(b) and 457(b) plans, affecting more than one million investors, most of them K-12 public school employees. The proposed class period runs from July 15, 2019, through July 18, 2022.11GlobeNewsWire. EQUI-VEST Investor Alert
The case was transferred to the Southern District of New York in April 2025 and assigned to Judge Victor Marrero as Case No. 1:25-cv-03283. Lead plaintiff and counsel were appointed on May 29, 2025. As of mid-2026 the docket showed no amended complaint or motion-to-dismiss briefing, and the case remains in its early stages.12Stanford Law School Securities Class Action Clearinghouse. Equitable Financial Life Insurance Company EQUI-VEST Securities Litigation
Other Regulatory Actions Against Equitable
In March 2014, the New York Department of Financial Services fined AXA Equitable $20 million for violating New York Insurance Law. Between 2009 and 2011, AXA had filed to add a “Tactical Manager Strategy” to existing variable annuity contracts. The strategy used derivatives to cut equity exposure during volatile markets. DFS found AXA presented the change as a routine fund addition and did not disclose that the strategy could cap investment gains and hold down the value of guaranteed benefits tied to rising account values. DFS said the changes “effectively changed the nature of the product” for tens of thousands of policyholders without giving them a chance to opt in.13NY DFS. Consent Order, AXA Equitable14InvestmentNews. AXA to Pay $20M Fine for Handling of Variable Annuities
The company’s broker-dealer arm has drawn FINRA action as well. In October 2021, FINRA censured Equitable Advisors and imposed a $20,000 fine after finding that a 2018 customer settlement improperly required the customer not to oppose an expungement request, in violation of FINRA rules. Equitable said the language had been included inadvertently.15BrokeAndBroker.com. FINRA Equitable AWC Earlier FINRA penalties against AXA Advisors included $2.6 million in 2007 and smaller fines in 2005, 2015, and 2019. State insurance regulators have added their own penalties, including a $900,000 fine from Minnesota’s Department of Commerce in 2016 and smaller actions from Delaware, South Dakota, Washington, and Montana.16Good Jobs First Violation Tracker. Equitable Holdings
What About Indexed Universal Life Illustrations?
Indexed universal life (IUL) products across the industry have faced growing scrutiny over illustrations that critics say overstate expected returns, with Pacific Life agreeing to a $58.3 million settlement in a California IUL case.17AM Best. Pacific Life IUL Settlement An investigation by attorneys working with ClassAction.org into whether AXA Equitable specifically used misleading IUL illustrations was marked complete in February 2026 with no publicly identified lawsuit resulting from it.18ClassAction.org. IUL Insurance Lawsuits and Complaints So while the Brach settlement covered specific AUL II universal life policies and the EQUI-VEST cases cover variable annuities, no class action has been filed against Equitable over its IUL illustrations as of this writing.