 I.
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BACKGROUND |
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On 3 February 1998, the Claimant, [Name], submitted a claim form to an ATAG Ernst & Young Dormant Account Contact Office.
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On 11 June 1998, the Bank declined to disclose to the Claimant its name and the amount in the Account Holder's account ("the Account"). However, the Bank's decision was not final and the claim was sent to the Tribunal for independent review by a Sole Arbitrator. Subsequently, on 24 February 1999, Doron Shorrer, C.P.A., as Sole Arbitrator of the Claims Resolution Tribunal, decided in an Initial Screening Procedure that the information provided by the Claimant is not inconsistent with the information contained in the bank records and thus, the name of the bank and the amount in the account should be disclosed to the Claimant.
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Subsequently, the Bank and the Claimant (together, "the Parties") each signed a Claims Resolution Agreement, thereby agreeing that the claim be resolved by the Tribunal in accordance with the Rules. The Claims Panel was thereupon appointed to resolve the claim. This Partial Award is subsequent to the First Order of the Claims Panel, dated 12 May 1999 ("the Order").
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II.
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THE ACCOUNT AND THE ACCOUNT HOLDER |
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The Bank has submitted that the Account is dormant and identified the assets in the Account as 5,577.00 Swiss Francs, as of 11 June 1998. The Claims Panel has not verified the amount reported by the Bank. The principal amount may be adjusted and compensation for unpaid interest and previously deducted bank fees may be added on the basis of guidelines to be established by the Board of Trustees of the Independent Claims Resolution Foundation.
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The Bank produced copies of what it confirmed to be all of its existing Account records. The Bank documents provided the following information regarding the identity of the Account Holder:
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the Account Holder is [Name]; |
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the Account Holder provided the following address as an address for correspondence: [address]; |
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the Account Holder's country of domicile and his citizenship was German, and the Account Holder's citizenship might have also been Bulgarian; |
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the Account was opened on 23 September 1924 with a deposit made by a Mr. A.I.; and |
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on August 1930, a cheque was deposited into the Account from the A.R.I. AG in Vienna. |
III.
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THE SUBSTANCE OF THE CLAIMANT'S SUBMISSIONS |
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The Claim Form
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In his original Claim Form, the Claimant stated that the Account Holder was his great uncle, [Name]. The Claimant further stated that his great uncle was a lawyer, of Russian origin, who was born in 1896, resided in Germany and Czechoslovakia prior to and during the Second World War, and died in 1943 in Magdeburg, Germany. The Claimant stated that he is entitled to the account together with his mother, J.M., his three siblings: N.V., P.M. and J. M., and his cousin, [the Claimant], because they are his great uncle's legal heirs. In support of his claim, the Claimant provided copies of various documents, including: his passport; his identification card; his mother's passport and identification card; his brothers' passports and identification cards; a detailed family tree drafted by his father; and powers of attorney from his relatives, granting him authority to submit a claim to this dormant Account on their behalf.
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The Order
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In the Order, the Claimant was provided with the Bank documents and was invited to review them and submit general comments or further information in relation to them. Additionally, the Claimant was requested to provide the following information:
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the citizenship of his great uncle; |
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any information on the identity of Mrs. G.G., whose address the Account Holder used in correspondence with the bank; |
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any information regarding the identity of A.I. who, according to the Bank records, deposited money into the Account; and |
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any connection between his great uncle and A.R.I. AG in Vienna. |
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Additionally, the Bank was invited to submit any comments it may have regarding any matter set out in the Order.
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The Claimant's response to the Order
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By letter dated 28 June 1999, the Claimant responded to the Order. In his response, the Claimant stated that his great uncle was a Russian citizen who resided in Berlin, Germany, due to circumstances in Russia in 1917, who died in 1943, and was buried in Magdeburg. The Claimant explained that his great uncle died in the same year that the Claimant was born. Accordingly, he does not have further information about Mrs. G., or A.R I. AG in Vienna, which he supposes was connected to Russia in some way. The Claimant also stated, "[l]ikewise I have no information about Mr. A.I. I know that my great uncle was a lawyer and he was fighting against the Bolchevics [sic] and he was editing a magazine to support other immigrants from Russia in Western Europe. Mr. A. I. could be one of his co-operators." The Claimant further states his concern regarding the depletion of the account from 10,640.30 U.S. Dollars in 1950, to 6,980.15 Swiss Francs in 1976, and the lack of bank documents explaining this discrepancy.
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As of the date of this Partial Award, the Tribunal has not received any response to the Order from the Bank.
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IV.
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CONSIDERATIONS |
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For a claim in the Ordinary Procedure to be approved, the Claimant must show that it is plausible in light of all the circumstances that he or she is entitled, in whole or in part, to the Account. In making this finding of plausibility, the Claims Panel must assess all information submitted by the Parties or otherwise available to it. The Claims Panel must also bear in mind the difficulties of proving a claim, given the destruction of the Second World War and the Holocaust and the length of time that has lapsed since the opening of the Account.
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In this case, the Claimant has identified a specific relative, his grandfather's brother, who shares a similar name to the Account Holder, and has demonstrated this family connection through a detailed family tree. Additionally, the Claimant has demonstrated a connection between his great uncle and Germany, the published country of residence of the Account Holder, and has drawn a connection to Berlin, which the Bank records indicate was the Account Holder's unpublished place of residence. Finally, the Claimant provided many other details regarding the identity of his great uncle, all of which could plausibly correspond, or at least are not inconsistent, with the information contained in the Bank records.
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Regarding the entitlement of the Claimant and his relatives to the assets in the Account, the Claimant has stated that his great uncle never married and did not have any descendants, and that he and his relatives are his only remaining heirs. Furthermore, the Claimant has demonstrated, through the submitted family tree, that he and the mentioned relatives are the closest surviving relatives of his great uncle. Thus, on the basis of the Claimant's statement and its illustration in the family tree, the Claims Panel finds it plausible that the Claimant and his relatives are the sole heirs of the Claimant's great uncle.
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Finally, a finding of plausible entitlement cannot be made unless the Claims Panel determines, amongst other things, that:
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(i)
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all documents and other information have been submitted by the Claimant regarding the relationship between the Claimant and the published Account Holder that can reasonably be expected to be produced in view of the particular circumstances; and |
(ii)
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no reasonable basis exists to conclude that fraud or forgery affect the claim or evidence submitted; or that other persons may have an identical or better claim to the Account. |
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The Claims Panel notes that the Claimant's submission has met the first requirement, as the Claimant has provided information and documentation regarding his great uncle's identity, and has provided a reasonable explanation - the fact that he was born on the same year that his great uncle died - for the lack of further information or documentation.
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Regarding the second requirement, the Claims Panel finds no evidence of fraud in connection with the Claimant. Additionally, the Claims Panel also notes that as the Claimant's claim is the only claim this Account which has reached the arbitration stage, there is no information before the Tribunal that might suggest that there are other persons with equal or better claims to the Account.
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As a final matter, and in accordance with Article 15, the Claims Panel finds that there is no reason to believe that the Account Holder may have acted as an intermediary for a victim of Nazi persecution, that the Claimant may have submitted a fraudulent claim, or that the assets in the Account may have been looted from victims of Nazi persecution.
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In light of these considerations - and in the interests of resolving this proceeding in an informal manner and under relaxed procedural rules in accordance with Article 22 of the Rules - the Claims Panel determines that the Claimant has established that it is plausible in light of all circumstances that he and the other relatives he has identified are entitled to the assets contained in the Account.
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V.
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PARTIAL AWARD |
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Based on the submissions of the Parties and the above considerations, and in accordance with the Rules, the Claims Panel renders the following Partial Award:
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1.
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The Claims Panel recognizes that the Claimant has a valid claim to the assets contained in the Account of the Account Holder and orders the Bank to transfer control of the assets to or at the direction of the Claimant as 5,577.00 Swiss Francs, being the amount reported by the Bank on 11 June 1998. In making this payment, the Bank will not assess any fees. |
2.
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The Claims Panel orders the Claimant to distribute the above-mentioned assets paid to him by the Bank among his mother, three siblings and cousin, whom he has mentioned as other entitled persons to the Account. In addition, as the Claimant mentions the children of [Name] and the daughter of [Name]. as additional persons who may be entitled to the assets in the Account, but whose addresses he does not have, the Claims Panel orders the Claimant to share, to the extent possible, the assets in the Account with them. |
3.
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The Claims Panel will issue a Final Award, in which compensation for unpaid interest and bank fees previously deducted may be added on the basis of guidelines to be established by the Board of Trustees of the Independent Claims Resolution Foundation. |
4.
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This Partial Award will be sent to the Parties and to the Claimant's mother, siblings and cousin by registered mail against receipt. |
19 August 1999
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| Chairperson |
Co-Arbitrator |
Co-Arbitrator |
| [signature] |
[signature] |
[signature] |
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| Prof. Thomas Buergenthal |
Judge Hadassa Ben-Itto |
Dr. Robert Briner |
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