In Re: Holocaust Victim Assests Litigation

Filing 24

ORDER. It is hereby ORDERED that in accordance with the terms and conditions of the Stipulation of Settlement, this appeal shall be terminated on consent, and that all claims on the Settlement Fund based upon assets held by Paul Wittgenstein, Hermine Wittgenstein, Helene Salzer, Wistag AG and Wistag Partnership be finally resolved as provided in the Stipulation of Settlement. Ordered by Judge Edward R. Korman on 8/20/2012. (Schwenk, Andrew)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK
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IN RE: HOLOCAUST VICTIM ASSETS
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LITIGATION
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This Document Relates to: All Cases
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Case No. 12-340 (ERK)(JO)
(Consolidated with CV 96-4849,
CV 96-5161 and CV 97-461)

MEMORANDUM & ORDER

MEMORANDUM & ORDER TERMINATING APPEALS IN IN RE ACCOUNTS OF PAUL
WITTGENSTEIN ET AL.
KORMAN, J.:
As provided under the Settlement Agreement, and in accordance with the procedures
established in the December 8, 2000 Memorandum & Order and in the Plan of Allocation and
Distribution of Settlement Proceeds, claimants appeal from the CRT’s Certified Denial of Claims
to the Accounts of Paul Wittgenstein, Hermine Wittgenstein, Helene Salzer, Wistag AG and
Wistag Partnership. The facts surrounding the claims are set forth in the CRT’s Certified Denial.
On this appeal, the claimants challenge various aspects of the CRT denial of their
multifaceted claim. After reviewing their written submissions, I heard oral argument. During the
argument, counsel for the claimants and lead counsel for the beneficiaries of the Settlement Fund
engaged in an off-the-record discussion about a possible agreed resolution of the issues presented
in the appeal.

As the previously entered and filed Stipulation of Settlement recites, these

discussions lead to a proposed settlement of the claim for US $6,063,918.88, an amount equal to
ten- to twenty-percent of the value of the claim if it was successful in its entirety.
While it is unclear whether the claimants would have prevailed on all of their arguments
addressed to various prongs of the CRT denial, after reviewing the entire record, I was satisfied

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that there was sufficient merit to the claim that justified a settlement in this range. Consequently, I
approved the Stipulation of Settlement on August 3, 2012. This settlement frees significant sums
for immediate distribution to other class members, while avoiding unnecessary additional expense
and protracted delay in distributing the remaining settlement fund assets to class members.
Therefore, it is hereby ORDERED that in accordance with the terms and conditions of the
Stipulation of Settlement, this appeal shall be terminated on consent, and that all claims on the
Settlement Fund based upon assets held by Paul Wittgenstein, Hermine Wittgenstein, Helene
Salzer, Wistag AG and Wistag Partnership be finally resolved as provided in the Stipulation of
Settlement.
It is further ORDERED that for the payment of this Stipulation of Settlement certified and
approved by the Court, the Signatories of the Settlement Fund are hereby ordered to transfer the
sum of US $6,063,918.88 from the Settlement Fund to the Swiss Banks Settlement-Dormant
Accounts-Payment Account. The proceeds of this Settlement are to be paid to the IOLA (Interest
on Lawyer Account) maintained by claimants’ counsel, Stephen M. Harnik, to be disbursed to each
of his clients named in the spreadsheet titled, “Individual Awards,” filed on August 6, 2012. Mr.
Harnik is directed to provide me with proof that such disbursement has been made within 7 days of
his receipt of these funds.

Dated:

Brooklyn, New York
August 20, 2012

SO ORDERED:

Edward R. Korman
Edward R. Korman
United States District Judge

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