Chase, Citibank, Chiao Tung Bank win against 1975 Vietnamese depositors

From: Sidel, Mark <mark-sidel@uiowa.edu>

Date: Oct 2, 2006 3:34 PM

Subject: [Vsg] Chase, Citibank, Chiao Tung Bank win against 1975 Vietnamese depositors

Decided on Friday, perhaps the last in a string of cases on 1975 deposits in the Saigon

branches of foreign banks:

>From appellatedecisions.blogspot.com

"Chase and Citibank Pocket the Savings of Vietnamese Customers

Huynh v. Chase Manhattan Bank, 05-55091 (9th Cir., Sept. 28, 2006)

This case goes to show that it pays to operate a bank in a politically unstable country.

Chase and Citibank were among several banks that suddenly closed their Saigon branches in

1975, when the government of South Vietnam surrendered itself to North Vietnam. What

happened to all of those savings accounts? The banks kept the money, despite repeated

demands from their erstwhile customers. Twenty-eight years later, several customers who have

since immigrated to the United States filed suit. Unfortunately for the plaintiffs, they had

a serious statute of limitations problem, and the district court dismissed the suit.

Although the Ninth Circuit agrees that the banks' conduct over the years has been

questionable at best, the Court finds no basis for tolling the statute of limitations.

Accordingly, the banks' Vietnamese customers won't see a dime of their money."

Full text at http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/data2/circs/9th/0456105p.pdf for those

interested.