RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2011

Related Party Transactions [Abstract]

RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

8)       RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

Under its service agreement with AXA Equitable, personnel services, employee benefits, facilities, supplies and equipment are provided to MLOA to conduct its business. The associated costs related to the service agreement are allocated to MLOA based on methods that management believes are reasonable, including a review of the nature of such costs and activities performed to support MLOA. As a result of such allocations, MLOA incurred expenses of $51 million, $47 million and $46 million for 2011, 2010 and 2009, respectively. At December 31, 2011 and 2010, respectively, MLOA reported an $11 million and $8 million payable to AXA Equitable in connection with its service agreement.

Various AXA affiliates cede a portion of their life, health and catastrophe insurance business through reinsurance agreements to AXA Global Life in 2010 (and AXA Cessions in 2009 and prior), AXA affiliated reinsurers. Beginning in 2008 AXA Global Life, in turn, retrocedes a quota share portion of these risks to MLOA on a one-year term basis. Premiums and experience refunds earned in 2011, 2010 and 2009 under this arrangement totaled approximately $2 million, $2 million and $1 million, respectively. Claims and expenses paid in 2011, 2010 and 2009 were $1 million, $2 million and $1 million, respectively.

MLOA cedes a portion of its life business through excess of retention treaties to AXA Equitable on a yearly renewal term basis. Premiums paid in 2011, 2010 and 2009 to AXA Equitable totaled approximately $426,414, $395,877 and $365,339, respectively. Claims and expenses in 2011, 2010 and 2009 were $0, $894,972 and $(241,833), respectively.

As more fully described in Note 7, MLOA ceded new variable life policies on an excess of retention basis with AXA Equitable and reinsured the no lapse guarantee riders through AXA Financial (Bermuda) Ltd. MLOA reported $334,772, $361,422 and $417,046 of ceded premiums for 2011, 2010 and 2009, respectively.

In 2011, 2010 and 2009, respectively, MLOA paid AXA Distribution and its subsidiaries $36 million, $31 million and $27 million of commissions and fees for sales of insurance products. MLOA charged AXA Distribution's subsidiaries $3 million, $3 million and $3 million, respectively, for their applicable share of operating expenses in 2011, 2010 and 2009, pursuant to the Agreements for Services.

In addition to the AXA Equitable service agreement, MLOA has various other service and investment advisory agreements with affiliates. The amount of expenses incurred by MLOA related to these agreements were $2 million, $2 million and $2 million for 2011, 2010 and 2009, respectively.

On March 5, 1999, MLOA borrowed $51 million from MONY Benefit Management Corp. (“MBMC”), an affiliate, in exchange for a note payable in the same amount. The note bore interest at 6.8% per annum and was due to mature on March 5, 2014. Principal and interest were payable quarterly to MBMC. The carrying value of the note was $20 million at December 31, 2009. This note was paid in full on December 6, 2010.