Swiss Bank Corp. v. Eatessami

26 A.D.2d 287, 273 N.Y.S.2d 935, 1966 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 3258
CourtAppellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York
DecidedOctober 25, 1966
StatusPublished
Cited by12 cases

This text of 26 A.D.2d 287 (Swiss Bank Corp. v. Eatessami) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Swiss Bank Corp. v. Eatessami, 26 A.D.2d 287, 273 N.Y.S.2d 935, 1966 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 3258 (N.Y. Ct. App. 1966).

Opinion

Stevens, J.

This is an action to recover damages sustained by plaintiff as a result of defendant’s alleged fraud in causing loans to be made by plaintiff upon a pledge of counterfeit securities. The complaint contains an additional cause of action on unpaid loans.

An order of attachment was obtained by plaintiff against certain property of defendant, and thereafter a summons with [288]*288notice was duly personally served upon defendant in Israel, while such defendant was in legal custody.

In 1965 defendant moved to vacate the order of attachment and to dismiss the complaint. The matter was referred to a Special Referee to hear and report as to whether defendant in person or through an agent committed acts within the State of New York which would render him amenable to jurisdiction pursuant to CPLR 302. Pending the report, disposition of the motion was otherwise held in abeyance.

The Referee reported there was a failure of proof to sustain jurisdiction and defendant moved to confirm the report. Plaintiff cross-moved for leave to file an amended complaint, to file additional exhibits or, alternatively, to have the matter referred back to the Referee. The court received and considered the proposed exhibits and thereafter granted the defendant’s motion to dismiss the complaint but did so without prejudice.

This appeal is from the order entered June 29, 1966, which vacated the order of attachment and dismissed the complaint.

In 1963 two separate loans of $165,000 and $135,000, respectively, were obtained from plaintiff on pledges of forged or counterfeit stock certificates. The method used in each instance was similar. One Abdullah Motlag opened an account with Swiss Bank Corporation, Geneva, listing in the application as “identity papers produced ” at Manufacturers Hanover Trust Company passport M. C3-349902 issued in Iran. On April 29, 1963, he wrote a letter from New York to plaintiff in Geneva enclosing purported stocks of American corporations registered in the name ‘ ‘ Abdullah Motlag ” to be held in his account. On May 17, 1963, Motlag requested a loan against the securities, and on June 4, 1963, $165,000 was cabled to Manufacturers Hanover Trust Company in New York for account of Motlag.

On July 30, 1963, plaintiff acknowledged receipt to “ Balestra Finance Corp. & Mortgages ”, Montreal, Canada, of certain purported stock certificates registered in the name of Motlag. In August, 1963, at Motlag’s request a loan of $135,000 against these securities was sent to Motlag’s account at Chemical Bank New York Trust Company, and the receipt of same acknowledged by Motlag. Various communications in connection with the transactions were written in and mailed from New York.

On September 23, 1963, Motlag, by letter to plaintiff, introduced his “ colleague and good friend Mr. Abdulrahim Mottagi ” “a very trustworthy person.” Mottagi on a letterhead with the address 154 Nassau Street, New York, on September 26, 1963, referred to Motlag’s letter, requested information about opening an account and also about obtaining a loan on seenr[289]*289ities. Plaintiff suggested the securities be sent to its New York office. This was not done though Mottagi did open an account with Swiss Bank Corporation, Zurich, and mailed purported stock certificates to it.

Coincidental with Mottagi’s writing to plaintiff he wrote also to another bank in Zurich seeking similar information and subsequently sent purported stock certificates to such bank from “Balestra Finance Corp. & Mortgages”, Montreal, Canada. These certificates were subsequently returned to Balestra at Mottagi’s direction when he learned such certificates would be returned to New York to be indorsed by him.

Plaintiff claims that defendant masterminded the fraudulent schemes and received the benefits, or major portion of the proceeds. In support of its position it submits a statement taken from Kamyar in Israel by an Israeli and a Swiss police officer and initialed by them, though Kamyar refused to sign it after stating it was true. In the statement Kamyar, using the name Motlag, states he acted for defendant in obtaining the first loan and turned over the proceeds to defendant.

An affidavit was obtained from Khani in which he stated that in September and October, 1963, at defendant’s request, he signed letters in New York under the name of “Mottagi.” These letters were letters of inquiry in connection with the opening of the Savíss bank accounts and loans against securities. Khani stated defendant gave him forged passport No. 349902, purportedly then issued to “ Mottagi ” in which Khani’s photograph was inserted and which was later used by Khani in registering at a Zurich hotel. Khani also used money obtained from defendant in opening a bank account in New York.

The single question is whether there is sufficient proof of tortious acts committed within the State of New York in furtherance of the swindle so as to confer jurisdiction pursuant to CPLR 302 and warrant denial of the motion to vacate the attachment.

CPLR 6201 sets forth the grounds upon which an attachment may issue. One of such grounds is fraud, the basis of the present action, and plaintiff is required to show it has a cause of action on such ground (CPLR 6212). However, “the jurisdiction to grant an attachment does not, we think, involve a preliminary determination by the officer to whom application for the writ is made, whether in law the case presented by the complaint will entitle plaintiff to the relief he asks. It is sufficient to authorize him to grant the writ that it appears that the action is brought for one of the causes where attachment may issue, and the other facts are shown which authorize the process to [290]*290be issued ’’ (Van Camp v. Searle, 147 N. Y. 150, 161). The sworn information must have some probative force and not rest upon hearsay alone” (Brandly v. American Butter Co., 130 App. Div. 410, 411) and “ shall be such that a person of reasonable prudence would be willing to accept and act upon it” (Buell v. Van Camp, 119 N. Y. 160, 165). While there must be a sufficient showing that the ultimate facts stated in the pleading can be substantiated (Miller Bros. Constr. Co. v. Thew Shovel Co., 248 App. Div. 150) the truth of the facts stated may be assumed (United States v. Brown, 247 N. Y. 211, 217) and plaintiff must be given the benefit of all legitimate inferences and deductions that can be made from the facts stated (Ecco High Frequency Corp. v. Amtorg Trading Corp., 81 N. Y. S. 2d 610; Bendure v. Bidwell, 82 Misc. 33), although evidentiary facts making out a prima facie case must still be shown. (Georgis v. Giocalas, 225 App. Div. 577.) ” (Public Administrator of N. Y. County v. Gallo, 20 Misc 2d 388, 389, affd. 9 A D 2d 884; 7 Weinstein-Korn-Miller, N. Y. Civ. Prac., par. 6223.11.)

The foregoing are the principles generally applicable. In addition to the earlier factual statement and certain exhibits earlier referred to, plaintiff in support of the attachment and its claim has submitted numerous affidavits from various individuals all tending to indicate how the fraud was committed and what acts occurred within the State in furtherance thereof.

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Bluebook (online)
26 A.D.2d 287, 273 N.Y.S.2d 935, 1966 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 3258, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/swiss-bank-corp-v-eatessami-nyappdiv-1966.