Credit Suisse headquarters in New York. Credit: William Savitt.Image: keystone/dr
The saga of the fall of Credit Suisse continues in the US. A lawsuit by AT1 bondholders, who lost everything, has been delayed. Will the Confederacy end up in the Manhattan courts?
18/10/2024, 11:5518/10/2024, 12:12
Renzo Ruf, Washington / ch media
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The wheels of American justice are slow. The New York judge in charge of the complaint for damages from Credit Suisse creditors will establish a first assessment in February 2025 at the earliest. It appears from legal documents, including CH Media (including watson is a part) was aware of.
The civil complaint against the Swiss federation was filed in June in a federal court in the Manhattan district of New York. A group of eight creditors is demanding compensation from Switzerland of around 80 million francs. They claim that the Financial Markets Watch’s order to completely cancel AT1 bonds when Credit Suisse collapsed in spring 2023 was illegal.
The claimants informed Berne only two months ago. The US Embassy handed over the corresponding documents to the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA), as is the procedure for such sensitive cases. In a diplomatic note, the embassy emphasized that the US government was not taking sides in this dispute.
Switzerland represented by a recognized lawyer
The Confederacy is represented in New York federal court by attorney William Savitt. The co-director of the famous firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz is considered “one of the most talented lawyers in the United States”according to Financial Times.
William Savitt requested the court to extend the deadline. Last week, federal judge Dale Ho, who owes his appointment to Democratic President Joe Biden, granted that request. Dale Ho has scheduled an initial court hearing for February 5, where he intends to raise basic issues about the complaint.
In one of the first stages of the proceedings, William Savitt will try to convince the judge that the complaint against Switzerland is not admissible. States in principle benefit from immunity in other countries.
William Savitt.Image: dr
But the eight plaintiffs argue that Switzerland cannot hide behind international law because the Confederation was carrying out a “commercial activity” when Credit Suisse collapsed.
A spectacular hourly rate
William Savitt specialized in complex economic experiments. He successfully fought, on behalf of the Twitter board at the time, against Elon Musk when the latter decided to cancel his purchase of the social network.
The firm then billed $90 million in legal fees. Savitt’s hourly rate was $1,850.
Translated from German by Anne Castella
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