After 45 Years, Defendant Bank Prevails in What May Be Oldest Pending Lawsuit in NY
After 45 years, a bank has prevailed in a New York lawsuit brought over a school construction project in Okinawa, Japan.
Materials supplier Lance International Inc., which went bankrupt in 1965, accused a Citigroup Inc. predecessor, First National City Bank, in the 1966 suit of negligence in its role as a collection agent, reports Reuters.
Although both sides bore some responsibility for the delay in resolving what a plaintiff’s lawyer called the state’s oldest pending case, “ultimately it was plaintiff’s duty to prosecute its case, and it failed to do so,” said a five-justice Manhattan panel of the state supreme court’s Appellate Division in a written opinion. “Accordingly, summary judgment dismissing the complaint was warranted.”
It appears that the case might not be entirely over even now, however: “We are going to look at the ruling closely and decide our next step.” attorney Richard Roth, who represents the plaintiff, tells the news agency.
A bank spokeswoman says Citigroup is pleased with the appellate ruling.
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