In addition to extra expenses, there are also other costs in terms of time spent by senior management and directors to meet new regulations, Mr. Greenberg pointed out.

The AIG spokesman related that Mr. Greenberg told the meeting some insurance executives now have two jobs, dealing with "the regulatory burden" during the day and running the company at night.

When one of the shareholders asked Mr. Greenberg whether the benefits of the new law outweighed the costs, Mr. Greenberg replied, "I don't think so."

According to Susan McKenna, spokesperson for the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America in Des Plaines, Ill., Mr. Greenberg's sentiment is fairly common among insurance company executives. Ms. McKenna said that many in insurance management feel Sarbanes-Oxley requirements are too costly and burdensome, particularly because insurers are already heavily regulated compared to other industries.

The Sarbanes-Oxley Act?enacted in the aftermath of high-profile financial misdeeds at corporations such Enron and WorldCom?seeks to tighten internal accounting measures and hold company executives more responsible. The act is also designed to reduce the conflicts of interest among external audit firms and companies they audit and increase independence by board members.

By some accounts, Sarbanes-Oxley requirements have cost large insurers such as AIG millions of dollars, with audit fees rising 20-to-30 percent.