As summer ends, I’ve been tracking a very Wall Street row concerning (what else?) compensation. The fascinating legal battle, now entering its second decade, pits AIG Financial Products—the derivatives-hedging subsidiary of AIG, the insurance behemoth with a market value of nearly $50 billion these days—against 46 of its former executives who helped gut the financial system back in 2008 by underwriting and selling highly controversial insurance products. The former executives are seeking some $500 million in deferred compensation, including damages, for their hard work, which wound up costing taxpayers a cool $185 billion in bailouts.