-JO Jacob Friedman, Estelle Sapir and Miriam Stern, on Behalf of Themselves and All Others Similarly Situated v. Union Bank of Switzerland, et al. (See Doc. No. 897)
Filing
4822
MEMORANDUM AND ORDER Approving Set 27: One Amendment to a Certified Adjustment Certified by the Claims Resolution Tribunal Pursuant to Article 31(2) of the Rules Governing the Claims Resolution Process and Authorizing Payment from the Settlement Fund. Ordered by Senior Judge Edward R. Korman on 4/16/2012. (Greene, Donna)
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FILED
US
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK
*
x
IN RE: HOLOCAUST VICTIM ASSETS
LITIGATION
Case No. 09-160
IN CLERK'S OFFICE
DISTRICT COURT E.D.N.Y.
APR 1 7 2012
*
(mS?.f6~LYN OFFICE
(Consolidated with CV 96-4849,
CV 96-5161 and CV 97-461)
This Document Relates to: All Cases
MEMORANDUM & ORDER
x
MEMORANDUM & ORDER APPROVING SET 27: ONE AMENDMENT TO A CERTIFIED
ADJUSTMENT CERTIFIED BY THE CLAIMS RESOLUTION TRIBUNAL PURSUANT TO
ARTICLE 31(2) OF THE RULES GOVERNING THE CLAIMS RESOLUTION PROCESS
AND AUTHORIZING PAYMENT FROM THE SETTLEMENT FUND
KORMAN, Judge:
As provided under the Settlement Agreement, and in accordance with the procedures
established in the December 8, 2000 Memorandum & Order and in the Distribution Plan, and my
June 16, 2010 Memorandum and Order Approving Adjustment of Presumptive Values Used in the
Claims Resolution Process and Authorizing Additional Payments for Deposited Assets Class
Plausible Undocumented Awards, the Claims Resolution Tribunal (the "CRT") is hereby requesting
the Court's approval, pursuant to Article 31(2) of the Rules, of one Amendment to the Certified
Adjustment listed in Annex A.
The Adjustment Amendment listed in Annex A has been certified by the CRT in accordance
with the presumptive value adjustment amounts set forth in my June 16,2010 Memorandum & Order
(see chart, "Article 29 Value Presumptions for Accounts with Unknown or Low Values (1945
Values)").
In this case, the original award, In re Accounts of Elsa and Paul Friedmann, was
approved on May 20, 2004 and subsequently amended on October 21, 2004, December 30, 2004, and
January 19, 2010. The original award included a total of five accounts: three custody accounts held
by Elsa Friedmann, and one custody account and one demand deposit account held by Paul
Friedmann.
As detailed in the May 2004 Award, no value information regarding two of Elsa
Friedmann's custody accounts was available. However, the values of her third custody account and
of Paul Friedmann's custody and demand deposit accounts were included in Elsa Friedmann's 1938
Census declaration.
The May 2004 Award noted that the bank records contained information
regarding the value of one of Elsa Friedmann's custody accounts, and that this value was consistent
with the value she reported in her asset declaration for that account. Based upon this information,
two of Elsa Friedmann's custody accounts were awarded at presumptive value, and her third custody
account, as well as the custody account and demand deposit account held by Paul Friedmann, were
awarded at their known values, which were below the Article 29 presumptive account values
determined by the ICEP auditors.
In an Order dated 21 October 2004, I approved an amendment to the May 2004 Award,
noting that account owners often underreported values in their Census declarations, and ordering that
if values reported in declarations were below the presumptive value, absent corroborating evidence
(for example, value information contained in records from the bank), such accounts were to be
awarded at their presumptive value. Accordingly, the October 2004 Award Amendment bumped up
the value of Paul Friedmann's demand deposit and custody accounts to their presumptive values.
The value of Elsa Friedmann's custody account that was awarded at known value was not bumped
up, because there was corroborating value evidence in the bank records.
Subsequently, the
December 2004 Award Amendment addressed a slight calculation error contained in the October
2004 Award Amendment.
The January 2010 Award Amendment addressed Elsa Friedmann's custody account that was
awarded at known value. The previous known value was based upon the market value of three bonds
in that account that were of good quality. According to the CRT Guidelines for the Valuation of
Securities (the "Guidelines"), which were adopted after the May 2004 Award was approved, such
bonds of good quality are awarded at nominal value, if the market value is below nominal value. The
January 2010 Award Amendment thus increased the known value of this custody account. The
account was still awarded at known value, because the bank records substantially corroborated the
known value amount.
Pursuant to my Order dated June 16, 2010, the original award amount of this award was
adjusted in a Certified Adjustment that I approved on December 23, 2010. The December 2010
Adjustment addressed Paul Friedmann's custody and demand deposit accounts, which were awarded
at their respective presumptive values, and two of Elsa Friedmann's custody accounts -- one that was
awarded at known value (as amended by the January 2010 Award Amendment, and that was
correctly not bumped up), and one that was awarded at presumptive value. Due to an administrative
oversight that was kindly brought to the CRT's attention by the Holocaust Claims Processing Office
of the New York State Department of Banking, Elsa Friedmann's second custody account that was
awarded at its presumptive value in the May 2004 Award was inadvertently omitted from the
December 2010 Adjustment. The Adjustment Amendment listed in Annex A amends the amount of
the Adjustment to include the omitted account.
The total amount awarded in this Adjustment Amendment is US $80,888.43.
Therefore, it is hereby
ORDERED that the attached Adjustment Amendment is hereby approved for release to the
relevant claimant pursuant to Article 31 (2) of the Rules;
ORDERED that the attached Adjustment Amendment is hereby approved for payment
pursuant to Article 31(2) of the Rules;
ORDERED that for the payment of this Adjustment Amendment certified by the CRT and
approved by the Court, the Signatories of the Settlement Fund are hereby ordered to transfer
immediately US $80,888.43 from the Settlement Fund to the Swiss Banks Settlement-Dormant
Accounts-Payment Account.
It is further ordered that the Special Masters shall provide the Court with the name and
address of every class member receiving an Adjustment which information shall be filed with the
Court under seal.
I will issue additional orders approving Adjustments certified by the CRT and transferring
further sums from the Settlement Fund as the CRT certifies them to this Court.
Dated:
Brooklxn, New York
April&,2012
~ERED:
s/Edward R. Korman
Edwa~ Ii Korman
United States District Judge
CLAIMS RESOLUTION TRIBUNAL
PV BATCH XXVII - ANNEX A
Pursuant to Article 16 of the Rules Governing the Claims Resolution Tribunal, as amended, (the
"Rules"), the Claims Resolution Tribunal hereby certifies as of 16 April 2012 the following
Adjustments for approval by the Court and payment by the Special Masters:
Account Owner Last Name and Claim Number
1.
Friedmann, Paul and Elsa 601288,601473
TOTAL
Paid Adjustment Amount
(CHF)
97,875.00
97,875.00
Paid Adjustment
Amount (USD)
80,888.43
80,888.43
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