Lehman Brothers’ US liquidator has blocked a scheme to settle claims against Lehman Brothers Australia in which a group of US professional indemnity insurers and QBE would have paid creditors.

Litigation by councils, churches and charities concerning collateralised debt obligations led to a settlement in April, under which they would get 40 to 49 cents in the dollar after US insurers paid $US45 million ($47.48 million) and QBE paid $3 million.

But the US liquidator has since acquired enough creditor votes to quash a scheme of arrangement enabling the settlement.

In a statement to creditors, Lehman Brothers Australia liquidator PPB Advisory says claims on the US policies were “strongly resisted”, but in May last year it negotiated a settlement and later reached agreement with QBE to pay $3 million.

A creditors’ meeting to approve the scheme last Wednesday had to be postponed when various Lehman Asian companies assigned their debt to the US liquidator, which said it did not support the scheme.

PPB adjourned creditor meetings, saying this would protect the insurance money and provide time to inform US Lehman entities about the scheme’s benefits.

The liquidators will ask the court for an adjournment.