Swiss bank pays Holocaust survivors for missing acounts
Politicians, Jewish groups, pension funds bicker over use of remaining $400 million in bank coffers.
By Amiram Barkat and Haaretz CorrespondentMartin Stern, a British-Israeli businessman who resides in Jerusalem, was surprised earlier this week to receive an announcement that he had been awarded $5,000. He was even more surprised to discover that the announcement came from the New York court handling claims for dormant Swiss bank accounts from the Holocaust era.
Stern's mother, Celia, filed claims six years ago for two bank accounts held by Stern's father and uncle. Celia died three years ago. Four months ago, Stern was informed that the claim had been rejected because the bank accounts had not been located.
But this week's announcement informed Stern that he would receive $5,000. The court ruled that the accounts probably existed, but the Swiss had destroyed the documents. Stern, an activist known for seeking restitution of Jewish property, discovered that in February of this year, the court decided to grant awards to 13,000 Jews in his position.
"I don't understand anything anymore," Stern said Thursday. "If they decided in February to compensate us, why did they hear my mother's case in June and reject it? Why did they wait six years, and why is distribution of the awards shrouded in secrecy?"
Professor Burt Neuborne, who represents the plaintiffs, said that a proposal to pay these awards was accepted five years ago. "The awards constitute symbolic recognition that these people had a just claim, but cannot prove it because the Swiss destroyed documents relating to 2.7 million accounts," he said.
The court's surprising generosity does not stop at handing out checks to plaintiffs whose cases were rejected. Claimants whose accounts were located, most of whom have received compensation, are slated to receive additional hundreds of millions of dollars soon. An internal report submitted to the court several months ago, a copy of which was obtained by Haaretz, suggests reevaluating the compensation sums retroactively.
The unpublished report submitted to U.S. District Court Judge Edward Korman recommends distributing at least another $250 million. But Neuborne told Haaretz Thursday that the new evaluation could raise the sums paid to plaintiffs by as much as $400 million. This would allow the New York court to elegantly dispose of the hundreds of millions left in its coffers.
In 1998, Swiss banks transferred $1.25 billion to pay the heirs of dormant Holocaust-era account holders. With the process drawing to a close, it is now clear that this sum is nearly three times higher than the sum paid account holders.
With an astronomical $500 million still in those coffers as of June 2006, infighting over the money had already begun among the state of Israel, the Welfare Fund for Holocaust Survivors and world Jewish organizations. But attorney Helen Junz, who is in charge of handling claims for the court, had a different idea: Apparently, the monetary value of only 400 to 500 accounts was known. The remaining 3,000 accounts were "empty," and compensation was based on formulas devised by accountants.
Junz discovered that the holders of "empty" accounts received sums that were dozens of percent lower than the holders of accounts whose value was known, and she recommended that the court close the gap retroactively. Weeks ago, lawyers representing the state of Israel were told of this recommendation and hastened to file objections.
Attorney Kent Yalowitz of the Arnold and Porter law firm, who represents Israel, said the money the state is seeking is not slated for government ministries but for private organizations that help Holocaust survivors, first and foremost the Welfare Fund. "Recalculating the compensation will have ramifications for 100,000 needy survivors," he said.
Daniel Ganzfried, a Swiss journalist who has followed the affair from the outset, told Haaretz that these developments were to be expected. "The sum paid by the Swiss banks wasn't realistic and stemmed from political pressure. It is now clear that this was a bad deal morally."
Neuborne told Haaretz that he vehemently rejects any criticism of the efficiency of the Swiss banks arrangement. "The Swiss banks destroyed almost all documentation, and despite working like the blind, we managed to distribute $400 million to account holders. With the new evaluation, that sum will increase to $600, $700 or even $800 million. We have also distributed money to needy Holocaust survivors. A total of 400,000 people have received almost $1 billion from us."
Neuborne, who once said that he worked pro bono on the case, was recently the center of public outcry when he petitioned the court for $4.7 million in fees. The New York Times revealed that his work reports included inaccuracies such as 30 hours of work on a single day. Neuborne told Haaretz that the $6 million retainer he and other attorneys seek is less than one percent of the total sums awarded, far lower than the norm in similar cases.
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All this is more money grubbing jewry out to slander the Swiss and Germans.
Just wondering how much money will be retrieved from the Madeoff banking scheme?
I heard a touching story on CBC in Canada a couple of weeks ago. A sister - now in her 70's - living in Canada, reunited with her brothers, both parties believing previously that the others had died in the holocaust long ago and astonished to find they were still alive. I believe they met for the first time since WW II in Jerusalem. (sorry, don't remember details, I was in the car at the time.) The reporter didn't mention but I couldn't help but wonder: did any or all of them receive compensation for the death of their relatives and if so: do they now give back the restitutional funds they received? They should if they received any, that's for sure.
Where are the payment from Israeli banks? Where are the payment from USA banks? Where are the payment from Hungary banks? Where are the payment from Austria banks? ETC, etc Regards Roberto PS: Better late then ever!
It galls me to see their advertizing on TV in the US. I wonder how many Jews seeing it know the history of this bank, and its destruction of inconvenient records. And I wonder, at this late date, how many really care. Alas !
I think - Greg Rickman/Alfonse De'Mato have started the investigation into the Swiss dormant accounts. It became a good deal for many, victims, courts, lawyers.... The affair is a bitter-sweet one. I agree, part of the money should go to Palestinian causes, too, to close the gap between Israelis and Palestinians. It would be the minimum to lift all out of the poverty. Rich Palestinians are not doing enough for the poor. The wellfare of all is a humane duty.
Nobody controls the Claims Conference's spending habits which are highly controversial. Traditionally only a fraction of the money goes to victims, the (bigger) rest vanishes in "projects" or is held in JCC's coffers. Also, JCC administration cost are high. JCC's highest-paid official, executive vice-president Gideon Taylor, gets an annual $437,811 in salary and pension.
What are the victims of the suicide bombers going to get from you? You will get that at one hundred percent interest.
Kidnappers, theives and murders such as Palestinians should receive nothing. Look what all that world aid has done for them. Allowed them to build explosive belts for terrorists, quassim rockets, and their own government cant get it together and is infighting with violence. What more do you expect?
Empty accounts?? Sure, they were emptied by bank employees who had the possibility to do so. Swiss people neutral in WWII ? Yeah right, they behaved just like their German brothers. Shame on them!
5000 USD? peanuts for this Swiss bank. It is a disgrace that they made billions of dollars of stolen Jewish money.
If there are holocaust survivors in need in Israel, why then is your government doing nothing about it, but is financing with taxpayer’s money the election campaigns of the neo-Nazi parties in Germany?
Neuborne represented and accepted his responsibilities under the pretext of 'pro bono'. He has the right to hand over his responsibilities to someone else, if he can't live up to those demands, but he can't suddenly ask the court for $4.7 million, saying he worked extra hard. It was his choice, and he chose to pass up paid jobs for this right cause. When so many survivors are seeing little of this money, who needs to see a him (one person) with such a huge sum in his pockets?!
Neuborne sought 4.7 million in fees and says 6 million in fees is 1% of money making the total some 600 million. Actually the total is 1.25 billion. So he really can't do math. The real point though is that Celia died. My grandfather died. My grandmother is almost dead. This generation is almost gone and that's REALLY sad. Yet the money is coming in thick and fast and certainly NOT going to those left alive. Maybe a bit to their children, but obviously most of it goes to Zionist organisations to carve giant museums into mountains and bring the world leaders there ... in order to keep the money coming.
you can expect more surprises and go on getting money for generations to come. but only for jews.they will get for non existent accounts, for sure. but htink palestenions being murderd arbitarily or tyhe lebenes clusterbombed.they will get what?
infighting over the money had already begun among the state of Israel, the Welfare Fund for Holocaust Survivors and world Jewish organizations. Same with the Claim conference which recieved compensation for foced labour, did not allow to file a claim on behalf of those who passed away ,like my mother who was 13years working in a factory for the Germans with her sisters. Instead they are spreading the money around. And I think that they had to pay also for those who passed away before time and could not file a claim .Their names are filed by the Germans.
The money will be used to make the rich (who will cry for more) even richer and more than 80.000 Holocaust survivors in Israel who live in dire poverty will be bypassed again.
Shame on them. So called nutralls! Shame also on SNCF!!! They charged the Jews that were using their train for the journey!!!
A bank loves you when you open a bank account and doesn't like when the bank account get closed A Swiss Bank loves you when you open a swiss bank account and hates you when you close it . The Swiss Banks still possess $billions from holocaust victims Never , ever deal with them if possible .
The so called "Journalist" Daniel Ganzfried is a well known Israel-hater. We don't need his judgement about morality.He's argument that the Swiss Banks payments where due to political pressure is used usually by Anti-Semites.
The Swiss banks found out for 32 million dollars of accounts. The Volcker comittee finally found out all the accounts represented an amount between 150 to 230 million dollars. In 1.998 the Swiss banks offered 600 million US dollars. In august 1998, they finally accepted to be swindled by 1,25 billion dollars. This is called the biggest legal swindle of the 20th century. Will Spielberg make a film out of it ? :))
Who lost their properties in 1948 and 1967 ? And For the Lebanese who lost their properties & lives during the 22 years of occupation ? Many Israeli's repeated to me in the talkbacks that the rights of the palestiniens of 1948 were dead because a lot of time has passed ! I am amazed. Why is then the right of the JEWS ETERNAL ?
I wonder what the original deposit was calculated to be if compound interest after sixty years brought the current sum up to only $5,000. It would turn the Swiss banking system upside down to compensate those to the money entitled honestly but this is a slap in the face.