U.S. judge orders General Re to provide internal records

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A U.S. judge has ordered the General Re Corp reinsurance unit of Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc (BRKa.N) to produce internal investigation records in a criminal trial of its former chief executive next month.

U.S. District Judge Christopher Droney, who sits in Hartford, Connecticut, ruled late Wednesday that the internal investigation records stemming from interviews of former and current employees should be provided to the court.

If at trial, those individuals give testimony that conflicts with the earlier investigation's records, then the documents could be given to the defense, the judge wrote in the ruling.

Four former General Re officers, including one-time Chief Executive Ronald Ferguson, were indicted last year in an alleged scheme to help insurer American International Group Inc (AIG.N) inflate reserves on its books. A former AIG officer was also indicted.

The judge also ruled that AIG provide documents detailing interviews of former or current employees conducted by a law firm during its internal investigation.

Opening arguments in the trial are scheduled to begin on January 7.

A Berkshire representative could not be immediately reached for comment. An AIG spokesman declined to comment on the ruling.

(Reporting by Emily Chasan; editing by Elaine Hardcastle)